Overnight, the search giant rewrites the rules of Web analytics. Google is taking the growing but relatively obscure Web analytics industry by storm. A year ago, the search giant acquired Urchin, a San Diego-based Web analytics company. Google then started giving away Urchin's software for free. So who benefits from Google's generosity? Small businesses, which get a sophisticated tool for free. And who suffers? Small businesses--those that specialize in analytics, that is. Talk about price pressure.

Web analytics software enables businesses to analyze information collected each time a website page is downloaded. The software also tracks the links that draw users to a given page, which helps companies evaluate online advertising spending--hence Google's interest. Demand for Web analytics is growing, and is projected to approach a billion dollars annually by 2010, according to JupiterResearch. When Google made its service free, the company's servers were overwhelmed by new customers, so much so that Google had to suspend new registrations temporarily.
Google has begun accepting new customers again, but some Web analytics companies believe that the exposure the industry has received thanks to Google has more than offset the damage done by the giveaway pricing.

 Some companies are struggling. At Mach5, an Asheville, North Carolina, firm, revenue from analytics software has dropped by 35 percent since Google got into the industry, says chief manager Mike Landis. To add insult to injury, Mach5 now finds itself buying Google's AdWords to attract more customers for its analytics software.

Google Analytics
Fairly sophisticated tools for savvy users.

netlink Web Analysis
Comes with easy-to-understand reports and a help line.
Gives detailed tracking of your hits and traffic generated by your website.

Source : inc.com