Until recently, searching for the name of an application from App Store through the Google search engine would have resulted in the display of the application link somewhere in the first results offered by the search engine. Unfortunately, this has changed, the TechCrunch guys sensing the fact that now the links for the App Store have disappeared from the top of the searches and can be found on the second or even the third page of results. No one knows if a change in Google's algorithms or a bug affects this change, but it is clear that Apple will be disadvantaged by the poor positioning of links for the App Store.
For most apps, adding "iTunes" works to deliver the iTunes URL results, whether logged in or out. It's the other types of queries that are difficult, and it's difficult to pinpoint an exact time when these changes began. Because Google is constantly refining its algorithms, and many users are on Google while logged in, tweaks to search rankings are rarely spotted immediately, unless it's a case where a URL has been banned entirely, whether on purpose or by accident.
The problem for Apple is that some searches that include the word iTunes should list the links among the first Google results, but unfortunately sometimes the links are placed even on the third page of searches. Of course, it is unlikely that Google intentionally downgraded Apple's links, and it is most likely a bug in the search engine, or some mistakes made by Apple's SEO team. Whatever the case, App Store traffic and app sales will most likely be affected.
