Google's third-quarter earnings surged more than sevenfold despite a slow summer season. Shares went as high as $311 but closed down $5.50.Google*said earnings for the quarter were $381.2 million, or $1.32 a share, compared with a profit of $52 million, or 19 cents a share in the year-ago quarter. Total revenue reached $1.58 billion, up 96% from $805.9 million last year."Although this is typically a slower season for Internet properties, we had another exceptional quarter," said Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt.Google*remains the dominant player in the search market. It accounted for 45% of all search queries in September, compared with 12% for MSN and 23% for Yahoo, according to Nielsen/NetRatings.

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