Seems to me google search results are the same as ever, they just put a G+ widget on the side and Twitter and Facebook peeps are upset they weren't included so they're calling it "evil".
There's a RadioLab episode where they explore this type of self-discipline (among other things). When a woman wanted to finally quit smoking, she told her friend that if she ever smoked again, the friend should take $5,000 out of her bank account and give it to the KKK. She couldn't bear the thought of her money supporting that group, and she never smoked again.
Why all the custom extensions/tracking software, and emphasis on compatibility with the last.fm api when you could get the same data by just pulling from last.fm?
Data ownership, maybe, but it also felt like a very heavy onboarding process. "Welcome! Now install these two browser widgets and some desktop client..."