This isn't an issue of middlemen, value or the alignment of interests between customer and company. It's an issue of legality.
Google operates a legal business. It sells advertising on a service that it owns. Period.
The parking companies in the article are knowingly inducing their "customers" to violate local laws that forbid the buying and selling of on-street public parking. These companies seek to profit from this and as a result are now in legal hot water themselves. As for ReservationHop, I believe restaurants may have legal recourse. California's unfair competition laws are fairly broad and I think an argument could be made that intentionally booking fake reservations for the purpose of advertising and reselling them would constitute an unfair and perhaps even fraudulent business practice.
And I'd add that even if it were technically legal to sell public parking spaces, it would still be a good thing to outlaw. The city's offering free public parking for a reason, and that reason isn't enriching a couple of entrepreneurs who moved here six months ago.
Google operates a legal business. It sells advertising on a service that it owns. Period.
The parking companies in the article are knowingly inducing their "customers" to violate local laws that forbid the buying and selling of on-street public parking. These companies seek to profit from this and as a result are now in legal hot water themselves. As for ReservationHop, I believe restaurants may have legal recourse. California's unfair competition laws are fairly broad and I think an argument could be made that intentionally booking fake reservations for the purpose of advertising and reselling them would constitute an unfair and perhaps even fraudulent business practice.