Google Buzz takes the fight to Facebook
Google's moves to take its own large bite of the burgeoning social networking pie
Computerworld - When the world's largest Internet company decides to spend some of its massive development budget on social networking tools, the likes of Facebook and Twitter had better take a long glance over their shoulders, industry analysts noted.
Google Inc. today took a powerful swing at such social networking sites by unveiling upgrades to the Gmail e-mail service that make it more of a social networking hub.
The Google Buzz tools, which began a weeklong rollout this afternoon, aim to help users better find the most important information contained in their flood of social posts, pictures and video.
"We're giving you tools and techniques that will let you manage your time better," said Bradley Horowitz, Google's vice president of product management. "Increasingly, it's hard to find value and not let it all just wash over you. We feel this bombardment, this fatigue of dealing with the rush of information."
Google Buzz is a new tab in Gmail that enables users to connect with one another and pull in information from sites like Twitter, YouTube, Picasa and Flickr. Social updates and posts will appear in users' Gmail in-boxes.
Buzz also is geared to make recommendations of posts from people a user might not follow but would likely find interesting.
Company executives today also unveiled a mobile version of Buzz and disclosed that an enterprise version is in the works.
Analysts said it all comes down to appetite.
Google, the most powerful company on the Internet, wants its share of the social networking pie. And it's one heck of a big pie. Facebook alone has about 400 million users, while Twitter has more than 45 million.
That, according to Dan Olds, an analyst at Gabriel Consulting Group Inc., is a lot of eyeballs that Google is now missing.
"Google obviously covets the millions and millions of Facebook and MySpace users and wants to monetize them," added Olds. "This represents a new market for Google, which up to now has had tools that users would use for particular tasks rather than linger on for extended periods of time. This is a serious bid by Google to use its strengths in other areas -- think search, mobility and locality -- to support its own social networking hub."
Google's move could also deliver a quick blow to Facebook and Twitter, which have been riding high on the social networking stratosphere. Even though Google Buzz is just out of the starting gate, Google quickly can draw on the "tens of millions" of Gmail users, as well as its own online cache, to quickly build a Buzz following.
- Lawmakers want FTC probe of Google Buzz
- Mike Elgan: How Buzz, Facebook and Twitter create 'social insecurity'
- Google slapped with class-action lawsuit over Buzz
- Google fixes Buzz bug
- After outcry, Google revamps Buzz networking application
- Mike Elgan: How Google Buzz for mobile will change your life
- Google tweaks Buzz to address privacy concerns
- Image gallery: The full buzz on Google Buzz
- Review: The full buzz on Google Buzz
- Google feeds mobile social craze with a little Buzz



- Excel 2010 Cheat Sheet
- Register for this Computerworld Insider Cheat Sheet and gain access to hundreds of premium content articles, guides, product reviews and more.
- Why Business Ethernet Services?
- Everybody's heard the cliché, "the network is your business." But that's not going to help you choose the best wide area networking service...
- Forrester Total Economic Impact (TEI) Case Study - Oracle
- In this paper, Forrester Consulting examines the total economic impact and potential return on investment (ROI) realized by three Enterprise organizations as they...
- The Hidden Truth About Virtualizing Business-Critical Applications
- This IDG whitepaper highlights key findings based on the Quickpoll Survey conducted with more than 300 Enterprise and Commercial IT decision makers worldwide...
- Top 10 Myths About Virtualizing Business-Critical Applications
- Even though virtualization has brought positive change to enterprise IT over the last decade, some skepticism remains about how valuable virtualization can be...
- Enterprise Java Applications on VMware: Unix to Linux Migration Guide
- This guide focuses on key considerations for IT Architects who are in the process of migrating Java applications from UNIX to Linux as... All Web 2.0 and Web Apps White Papers
- Apps QuickStart Series Part 2: Designing and Deploying SQL Server on VMware vSphere
- Download this webcast to learn about the design considerations for virtualizing SQL workloads, performance and scalability information and high-availability options, as well as...
- Apps QuickStart Series Part 1: Designing and Deploying Exchange 2010 on VMware vSphere
- Download this webcast to learn the virtual hardware design considerations for Exchange 2010, deployment using the building block approach, options for high-availability and...
- Customer Spotlight: How IPC The Hospitalist Company Implemented Oracle on Vmware
- Have you been looking to hear about customer's experiences with the new VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager product? View this webcast to learn...
- Virtualize Business-Critical Applications with Confidence
- Virtualizing business-critical applications has become a key focus for organizations as they move along their virtualization journey. With the launch of VMware vSphere®...
- Virtualizing Microsoft and Oracle on VMware vSphere: Benefits and Best Practices
- Virtualizing business-critical applications is an essential step in your journey to the cloud. Microsoft SQL Server, Exchange and SharePoint, and Oracle applications, are... All Web 2.0 and Web Apps Webcasts
