Not meant to be sarcastic. A single, web-based company could offer wonderful coveniences for web users if 1. they know what "all" people are searching for on the web 2. they are enabled (by finance) and allowed (by law) to acquire any other company that aims to serve the needs of "all" people searching for stuff on the web. #1 is a capability held by no other company on the planet, except Google. The point is that a single, all-knowing company offering such wonderful conveniences is not necessary responsible for creating them. First, they had to 1. spy on peoples' searches to determine what stuff people were looking for on the web and 2. acquire other companies that had already worked out how to best provide that stuff. If the all-knowing company did not exist, the other companies providing the stuff that people were searching for would still exist. The all-knowing company is initially just a middleman. In some cases this middleman has not been content to simply connect people with the companies providing the stuff and take a cut (through selling advertising services). Rather, the middleman seeks to acquire the companies and provide the stuff itself (enhancing its spying capabilities).