Google Places Says, "Owner Content Gets Priority"

The new Google Places Help Forum is not great yet, but certainly better than before.  An employee posted that Google does buy information from others, including YellowPages.com.  In the course of buying that information, there can be competing information.  This competing information can even have to do with key elements such as your name, address, phone number and such. 

One of my clients has a picture on her Places listing that she doesn't like.  It came in from CitySearch.  No telling where CitySearch got the photo, but you get the point.  The Google Places Rep said that Google will even call a business to find out which information is correct, when there is a conflict.  I would love to hear of examples of that happening.

The key element in the forum post:  Owner supplied information, pictures, and videos will always be preferred to info coming in from other sources, including the paid sources.  This is why it is so important that you claim your Google Places listing and keep it fresh.