The sluggish global economy also weighs on Google's efforts to correct this financial slip.

"Google isn't in big trouble, but there are limits to growth and limits to the market power that any single company can wield," said Olds. "Plus, we're also still in a serious worldwide recession. Google has managed to grow steadily throughout the recession, but perhaps we're finally seeing lower global economic activity have an effect on the Google juggernaut?"

Patrick Moorhead, an analyst with Moor Insights & Strategy, noted that Google certainly isn't alone. The economy is starting to drag on a lot of tech companies.

"High tech is in a financial funk, on the whole, as evidenced by the downturn in nearly all sectors of the market," he added. "Google can't do anything about the economy, but they can optimize their business around a downturn. They will need to pull back on their operating expenses, which could mean layoffs or less advertising themselves. Google is one of the last companies to reduce R&D spending, so they will need to go after operating expense."

Sharon Gaudin covers the Internet and Web 2.0, emerging technologies, and desktop and laptop chips for Computerworld. Follow Sharon on Twitter at , on or subscribe to . Her email address is .