Is Google penalizing affiliate pages ?

Accourding to Adam Lasnik, a Google representative, Google is panelizing affiliate pages. Quoting from a post he recently made over www.webmasterworld.com ...

Quote:

...you bring up an interesting point about the use of iframed IDX databases. But if everyone's pulling from the same database, that in itself sounds a bit like duplicate content in a broad sense. If that's the only "real" content on a page, why would surfers want to visit that site over the bazillion others that are pulling from the same database, or at least why would we want to include it in our search results with a ton of other sites that offer exactly the same database? That's an honest, not a rhetorical question, by the way. I am open to hearing more about why this content (and other iframed or otherwise included content that is syndicated, essentially) should be valued as "unique and compelling" content for users. We see what I think is the same issue with affiliates sometimes, many of whom are upset that they no longer garner the same traffic from Google that they used to. Our algorithms take a look at their pages and (computerwise) ask, "What value is this site providing that users can't get from other sites or even the 'mothership'? (originator of content" So, taking a brief detour... I've witnessed a sea change in the way many Webmasters treat affiliate programs. Back in my younger days, when t-rexes still roamed the earth, most affiliates seemed to be starting with good content and then adding affiliate links to make a spot o' cash to pay their hosting bills. The affiliate links were an afterthought. Nowadays, though, not only are many Webmasters *starting* with affiliate "content" as the foundation and then adding other "content," they're incensed when their rankings fall in Google. I'll be blunt and say that I have little, if any, sympathy in these situations and I'm guessing that my colleagues who write algorithms feel similarly...

Read more here:
http://www.webmasterworld.com/google/3192967-5-30.htm
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