What happens if the best of the Internet and television came together? This is the question that search giant Google aims to answer as it launches Google TV, a new service that combines television programming with search capabilities and rich Web applications. The recent announcement by the company revealed that the service is developed in partnership with other technology companies, including Sony, Intel, and Logitech. Google TV is being marketed as a new “entertainment hub” that lets viewers search channels, recorded TV shows, and websites – and watch television content using web-enabled sets or Google TV set-top boxes. Moreover, the service also allows users to browse the Web on television, including their favorite video, music, and photo sites. The service is powered by Google’s own Android software and Chrome web browser. Users can conduct Internet searches using a drop-down box that appears at the top of the TV screen, with results from millions of channels of entertainment across TV and the – Read the full article
Social media can be pretty confusing to individuals, businesses, and organizations who haven’t adopted – and who aren’t used to adopting early – to online trends and technologies. While some may have taken Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and other social media sites as an indelible part of their lives, others are left to wonder how and where to start. There’s just too much clutter, too much noise, and without proper guidance, successful adoption may seem out of reach. And now Google Buzz has been added to the mix. While as a business owner you may have heard a thing or two about how critical social media is to one’s business strategy, you may still find it next to impossible to keep up – especially with all these new social media sites appearing and growing all at once, like mushrooms. “So how is Google Buzz different from Twitter?” “I need a Google profile to use Google Buzz?” “Oh, I already have a – Read the full article
It’s all about choices and alternatives. It was with this in mind that search and advertising giant Google recently announced that it’s going to support Adobe by bundling the popular Adobe Flash player with downloads of the Google Chrome browser. New releases of the browser will thus feature the latest version of the Flash player. A company spokesperson indicated that Flash will be the first plug-in that is not actually from Google’s stable to be integrated into Chrome. “This will make Flash on the browser a seamless experience,” says the spokesperson, “so (users) will see performance benefits and use of fewer resources. A lot of the controls and shortcuts will work better and Flash will truly feel like a part of the browser.” While not a lot of Internet users surf with the Chrome browser – research indicates it’s only 5 percent – the announcement represents a major step towards strengthening the company’s two operating systems, the Android (available for – Read the full article
Just as Microsoft is trying to gain greater foothold in the search engine wars, which Google dominates, Google is trying to do the same in the Windows-controlled OS market. Yes, you heard that right. The company is launching its own operating system early next year: the Google Chrome OS. Google recently previewed Chrome OS, which is an open-source, lightweight system that is based off Google Chrome, the company’s web browser. While the company already has a mobile OS in Android, Chrome OS is primarily targeted at netbooks, at least initially. And why not? Netbooks are enjoying increasing popularity today, as more and more users push for innovation in their mobile computing devices. Google emphasizes that Speed, Simplicity, and Security are the pillars of the Chrome OS. Speed Google is taking out every unnecessary process and optimizing operations and running everything possible in parallel. The goal? To turn on the computer and surf the web in a matter of a few – Read the full article
At the recent PubCon in Las Vegas, Matt Cutts from Google delivered a presentation on what to expect in the year 2010. One of the bullet points discussed how, over at Google, there has been strong lobbying to introduce a new ranking factor into the algorithm: site speed. Soon, Cutt said, site or page speed may be a factor in the organic ranking algorithm. It can happen as early as next year, although we believe Google has been testing this as part of the algorithm for some time. This is a new insight to how Google determines page rankings. How fast a page loads is already a factor in the AdWords quality score; making it matter in the organic ranking algorithm should reward sites with fast load times, and which use fast servers. Right now there are over 200 ranking factors in the algorithm, each of them weighted differently. And while adding page loading speed to the mix won’t dramatically – Read the full article
Google recently announced its acquisition of AdMob, a leading mobile network that covers the Apple iPhone and other mobile platforms, including Android. The deal was worth $750 million in stock and serves to validate the continued growth of mobile marketing and advertising. Google said that the acquisition of AdMob gives the company more expertise in a market that is expected to grow rapidly over the next several years. Apart from that, however, it solidifies the entry of a major player in mobile marketing, the power, reach, and value of which more and more industry experts are beginning to recognize. After all, despite today’s difficult economic climate, mobile platforms continue to grow. With the move, Google demonstrates how committed and serious the company really is about the mobile advertising and marketing industry. What are other implications of this acquisition? One is the potential money that lies in mobile applications. iPhone, which has an app for almost anything, can encourage developers to – Read the full article
Google is giving a new voice to small businesses – using their existing phone numbers. The company announced recently that Google Voice (formerly GrandCentral), the telecommunications service developed by the company, now comes equipped with a new feature, one that could entice more small business owners to use it. While previously, Google Voice can only be used by getting a new Google number (a criticism on Google Voice, since not everyone wants to start over with a new number), now it is possible for users to sign up for the service with their own existing phone numbers. This new capability gives small business owners plenty of reasons to use Google Voice as a sort of online PBX (private bank exchange), and a free one at that. The voicemail feature, for example, lets Google Voice users access voicemail not just from their phones but also through a computer; messages are transcribed automatically into text and can be read on a Gmail-like – Read the full article
We’re moving beyond the tradition of consulting the yellow pages. With 80 percent of people turning to search engines to find local information, Google last week launched its Local Listing Ads service, which makes fixed-fee advertising placements available in Google’s local search results as well as in Google Maps. The new service demonstrates once again how the Internet – and Google in particular – is changing how local business listings are done – and searched. Available initially in San Diego and San Fransisco in limited beta, Local Listing Ads is different from Google AdWords in that it requires no creative or keyword management and no bidding. The monthly fee is flat, determined by Google with the goal of ensuring that businesses’ ads are seen by the highest number of people looking for relevant local information. Business owners who purchase the ad select the location and business category to ensure local targeting, and from there, Google takes care of the creating – Read the full article
