There's been a great deal of discussion recently about Google dropping SERPs for a great many directories out there. Enough so that many directory owners have begun to ask the question, "Is Google penalizing directories?" it would certainly seem so. however, a recent interview with Matt Cutts indicates that this isn't necessarily the case. Matt explains that there are a few factors that Google takes into account when evaluating a Blog Directory.


First, if the directory accepts every URL that is submitted, then the quality of the directory in general suffers, as many of the links submitted will be low-quality. If a significant portion of the directory is low-quality, then the directory becomes more of a link farm than a directory. Second, if the directory charges a fee for the submission, what is the purpose of the fee? In a quality directory, the fee should represent compensation for the manual evaluation of the submission, to determine if it is of enough quality to include in the directory. It is this second category that many directories are suffering, because many directories are charging for the submission only, and not including any sort of evaluation.