How Google Is Evolving Into a Media Company. Nope. . Up and down its ranks, Google executives will tell you without fail that Google is not a media company, that its organizes and manages content, but stays away from producing it. It’s an article of faith at the Internet giant. But it’s also beginning to show strain as Google moves into new territory. In February, Google announced a subscription service called One Pass to enable consumers to buy professionally produced news and information across the Web with a single click. Nowhere has Google’s growing media proficiency been more apparent than on , which is a platform that is looking more and more like a network for a postbroadcast world. The company is also putting time and effort into expanding deals with the N.B.A. and the National Hockey League, because as everyone — including — will tell you, sports are a great way to build a network for the long term.
So what, you might ask. For starters, being in the media business means looking at media a little differently. Google grants $2.7 million to IPI to promote innovation in online journalism. Google Hits Swiss Slopes as Street View Faces Legal Challenge. Google Offers Tools for Bringing Websites to TV.
As if Web designers and developers didn't have enough on their plates, what with the variety of browsers and standards to code for, there's a new kid in town - Internet TV. Not only do they need to account for browser, screen size and standard, but an entirely different method of interaction. Today, Google has acknowledged this problem, writing that it has worked to create some easy solutions for developers looking to optimize their content for Google TV. "As the Google TV platform continues to launch across more devices, developers are probably searching for an easy way to bring great content to Google TV users. We're happy to announce that we have an answer," the company writes on its blog. But what is this answer? According to Google, it's not only using the same standards and tools that are in use for the Web, but also providing some simple starting points: Google TV enables developers to build powerful websites using the same technologies they already work with.
Google Launches Shopping App for iPhone. Google is launching its popular shopping app, Google Shopper, for iPhone, complete with voice, image and local search. Originally released for Android last year, Google Shopper can find products based on text, voice or barcode recognition to get the price comparison of a specific product online. If you do a search for "HP printer," you'll be shown a list of different printer types, as well as a list of nearby locations where you can purchase the item. Google also displays a rating for the item, based on user reviews. When you select a specific item, Google gives you more details about the product. You can then choose to either check for the item on a variety of online retailers, or you can look up a list of local retailers that carry the product. If you choose local search, Google will display whether the item is available in each store.
You can also "star" a specific item to save for later or you can share it with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Google Reader. Google Readies Groupon Clone: Report. Google has confirmed that it is preparing a service called “Google Offers,” designed to compete with the popular social buying site Groupon. Google has told Search Engine Land: Google is communicating with small businesses to enlist their support and participation in a test of a pre-paid offers/vouchers program. This initiative is part of an ongoing effort at Google to make new products, such as the recent Offer Ads beta, that connect businesses with customers in new ways. We do not have more details to share at this time, but will keep you posted. Mashable broke the news on the coming launch, after receiving some promotional collateral for Google Offers that presents a very Groupon-like daily deal offering (the image below comes from those materials; the logo above spotted via Sean McCann).
Here’s an example of how the offers may be presented: [Editor note: Our original story linked to a Google Offers marketing document that Mashable had uploaded to Scribd. Google Wanted Groupon. Google Rolls Out Two-Factor Authentication For Everyone. You Should Use It. Groupon builds local advertising expensively | John Gapper's blog | Business, finance, media and technology views from the Financial Times. Strategy & managing Welcome. If you have yet to register on FT.com you will be asked to do so before you begin to read FT blogs. However, our posts remain free. This blog is mainly about business and strategy and how and why people who run companies take the decisions that they do. Your comments and criticism are welcome. To comment, please register for free with FT.com and read our policy on submitting comments. All posts are published in UK time. Contact andrew.hill@ft.com or john.gapper@ft.com about the Business blog.
See the full list of FT blogs. Most purchases, half of transactions to be mobile by 2015: Google. February 04, 2011 Two-thirds of all purchases and half of transactions will occur on mobile devices by 2015, Google executives said February 4. Consumer coupons will also transition from their current rate of 80% push to 80% opt-in four years from now, said David Shapiro, Google's director of small business marketing. “Marketers must follow the four B's,” said Shapiro, speaking at a Direct Marketing Association (DMA) breakfast at Google's New York offices.
“Be relevant. Be found. Be engaging and be accountable.” Consumers will also digest 80% of all visual content through digital by 2015, he added. “Mobile will be bigger than desktop in five years,” Shapiro added. Shapiro said search is “still the Web's killer app,” adding that mobile and search are becoming increasingly interconnected. “Last year, 50 million new websites launched,” Shapiro said. Michael Becker, North America managing director at the Mobile Marketing Association, said mobile has become a principle marketing channel.
Google Art Project Takes Street View Into Museums. Who Will Win the Android vs. iPhone Race? The iPhone may have captured the hearts and minds of many tech-savvy early smartphone adopters—not to mention marketers—with its sleek design, multitouch interface and available apps. But as Android has rolled out to more and more handsets, its popularity has surged and the loyalty of its users has increased to match that of iPhone owners. And in a few years the Android installed base will do the same. eMarketer estimates that after exploding from just 6% of the US smartphone market in 2009 to 24% in 2010, Android will continue to gain share through 2012, when 31% of all smartphone users will own a device running the Google OS. That same year Apple’s share of the market will hold steady at 30%, up only slightly from 2009.
Market share figures from several research firms show just how fast that scale has come. Between 2009 and 2010, Android grabbed a significant slice of the pie, mostly at the expense of Research In Motion and other non-Apple handsets. Google’s Boutiques.com Ramps Up For Fashion Week With Tons of New Features and Shops From Thakoon, Michael Kors, Jil Sander.
Boutiques.com, Google's fashion and retail platform, isn't about to ignore New York Fashion Week. In fact, they're introducing plenty of new features, shops, and contests to celebrate the eight day event: First up is a slew of new designer stores, including Michael Kors, Billy Reid, Thakoon, and Jil Sander. More shops will be revealed over the week. Those designers who operate their own boutiques can now request access to Designer Analytics, which allows them to see how shoppers interact with their brand on the site. Not only will they be able to see how many visitors click through to buy items, but they'll also have access to "Love/Hate" data. (On the site, users can say what they love about an item, and what they hate about an item, e.g. "I love the color, but I hate the silhouette.
") All in all, the facelift brings to Boutiques.com what we wanted from it in the first place--that techy edge that makes the user feel like she's smarter than the average fashion-obsessed shopper.