The Register has a story that is headlined UK judge gives Google a choice: Either let SEO expert read your ranking algos or withdraw High Court evidence. This is around a case going on since 2006 with Foundem, where Foundem says Google favors those who advertise in the organic results.
So the UK judge tells Google either drop your defense citing your algorithm doesn't do that or share your algorithm with the defense. Google isn't going to share its ranking algorithm with anyone outside of Google and I doubt Google will drop that portion of the defense.
The article says:
Foundem had asked for legal permission to bring in independent expert Philipp Klöckner to read confidential documents disclosed by Google in court.Those documents were court exhibits filed by Google engineers Cody Kwok and Michael Pohl. They sought, as the judge put it, "to explain the operation and aims of Google's ranking algorithms, and how they have been applied to shopping comparison sites generally and Foundem in particular".
"If Google maintains its present course, then for the reasons I have explained I will grant the application that Mr Klöckner be admitted to those two rings until further order," said the judge, ruling that he would give Google "reasonable time" to figure out its answer.
This is going to be fun.
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