Itsme
01-07-2006, 06:23 AM
Google announces software suite
Company also to offer video downloads from CBS, NBA and others
By TODD BISHOP
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
LAS VEGAS -- There's a new software suite in town, and it doesn't come from Microsoft.
Google introduced a free, downloadable software bundle consisting of programs from the Internet search giant and other companies. The bundle, dubbed the Google Pack, was announced Friday afternoon during an appearance by Google co-founder Larry Page at the Consumer Electronics Show.
"It's so that having the right software on your computer is as easy as going to the Google home page," he said.
None of the programs is from Microsoft, and some are direct rivals to the Redmond company's software. The initiative underscores the potential for Google to use its brand recognition and big consumer following to pose a competitive threat to Microsoft.
In another sign of Google's expansion beyond the pure search business, the company plans to add paid video downloads to its Google Video site, announcing a deal Friday with CBS to offer shows for $1.99. NBA video and other programs also will be available for purchase.
Additionally, Google announced an online video marketplace for users to offer their own videos, setting the price for purchase themselves.
Apart from an extended guest appearance by Robin Williams, the Google event had a decidedly understated tone. The soft-spoken Page, in a white Google lab coat and blue jeans, spent one segment pitching the consumer electronics audience on the importance of industry standards.
It was Google's first appearance at the glitzy trade show, and in some ways the event marked the company's coming of age as a broader consumer venture.
"Wow," Page said, reacting to the flashes popping after he rode out on the back of a robotic car. "I've never seen so many cameras in my life."
Later, with Williams cracking jokes at his side, Page fielded a range of questions from the audience. But he twice declined to answer directly when asked whether Google plans to offer its own PC or operating system.
With the Google Pack introduction, now available on its Web site, the company brings together several programs that are already available free on the Internet, including Adobe Systems Inc.'s Acrobat Reader, Seattle-based RealNetworks' media player and the Mozilla Firefox Web browser.
It also includes a version of Symantec's Norton AntiVirus program, in addition to such Google programs as Google Talk and its Picasa photo-management program.
Page said online updates for the Google Pack programs would be handled centrally, so that users wouldn't have to do that for each piece of software. He also said Google would ensure that the included programs don't annoy users with pop-up reminders.
At least initially, the Google Pack doesn't include a direct alternative to Microsoft Office or Windows, the Redmond company's two biggest programs.
But by establishing the software package, Google is creating the type of infrastructure that could ultimately be used to deliver additional programs, industry analysts said.
"This is really Google getting into the software distribution system," said Charlene Li, a Forrester Research analyst. Given Google's brand recognition and influence, she predicted that other software makers "are going to be gunning to get into that bundle."
"It does appear that it is a shot across the bow of Microsoft," said Michael Gartenberg, a Jupiter Research analyst.
Earlier in the day at the Consumer Electronics Show, Yahoo Chief Executive Terry Semel announced a new service, dubbed Yahoo Go, designed to give consumers a way to share and synchronize media and information among their computers, television sets and mobile phones.
The service includes a remote-controlled computer interface for browsing and viewing media on a large screen in a living room. The company said that interface runs on top of Microsoft's Windows XP operating system. At the same time, it duplicates and could compete with some of the functions of Microsoft's Media Center PC operating system.
Leading up to the appearance by Google's Page, the tech world has been rife with speculation about the potential for a big announcement from Google at the Consumer Electronics Show. One theory had the company releasing a low-cost PC, running not on Microsoft Windows but rather on its own operating system. The company denied that theory.
The increasing level of competitive tension between Microsoft and Google was brought into public view last year, when Microsoft filed suit in a bid to block Google from employing a prized researcher, Kai-Fu Lee, who left the Redmond company to join the search giant. The suit has since been settled.
Another sign of the rivalry came last month, when Google paid $1 billion for a 5 percent stake in AOL, maintaining its relationship with the online service and thwarting Microsoft's bid for its own AOL partnership.
Meanwhile, Microsoft and Google have each been moving into the domain of the other. Google, for example, added an on-screen sidebar to its hard-drive search software -- giving Google a physical presence on the Windows desktop.
Microsoft has developed its own Internet search technology to compete with Google and Yahoo, although the MSN Search site remains in third place in market share. The company is currently developing its own online advertising system, to replace technology that it licenses from a Yahoo subsidiary.
Company also to offer video downloads from CBS, NBA and others
By TODD BISHOP
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
LAS VEGAS -- There's a new software suite in town, and it doesn't come from Microsoft.
Google introduced a free, downloadable software bundle consisting of programs from the Internet search giant and other companies. The bundle, dubbed the Google Pack, was announced Friday afternoon during an appearance by Google co-founder Larry Page at the Consumer Electronics Show.
"It's so that having the right software on your computer is as easy as going to the Google home page," he said.
None of the programs is from Microsoft, and some are direct rivals to the Redmond company's software. The initiative underscores the potential for Google to use its brand recognition and big consumer following to pose a competitive threat to Microsoft.
In another sign of Google's expansion beyond the pure search business, the company plans to add paid video downloads to its Google Video site, announcing a deal Friday with CBS to offer shows for $1.99. NBA video and other programs also will be available for purchase.
Additionally, Google announced an online video marketplace for users to offer their own videos, setting the price for purchase themselves.
Apart from an extended guest appearance by Robin Williams, the Google event had a decidedly understated tone. The soft-spoken Page, in a white Google lab coat and blue jeans, spent one segment pitching the consumer electronics audience on the importance of industry standards.
It was Google's first appearance at the glitzy trade show, and in some ways the event marked the company's coming of age as a broader consumer venture.
"Wow," Page said, reacting to the flashes popping after he rode out on the back of a robotic car. "I've never seen so many cameras in my life."
Later, with Williams cracking jokes at his side, Page fielded a range of questions from the audience. But he twice declined to answer directly when asked whether Google plans to offer its own PC or operating system.
With the Google Pack introduction, now available on its Web site, the company brings together several programs that are already available free on the Internet, including Adobe Systems Inc.'s Acrobat Reader, Seattle-based RealNetworks' media player and the Mozilla Firefox Web browser.
It also includes a version of Symantec's Norton AntiVirus program, in addition to such Google programs as Google Talk and its Picasa photo-management program.
Page said online updates for the Google Pack programs would be handled centrally, so that users wouldn't have to do that for each piece of software. He also said Google would ensure that the included programs don't annoy users with pop-up reminders.
At least initially, the Google Pack doesn't include a direct alternative to Microsoft Office or Windows, the Redmond company's two biggest programs.
But by establishing the software package, Google is creating the type of infrastructure that could ultimately be used to deliver additional programs, industry analysts said.
"This is really Google getting into the software distribution system," said Charlene Li, a Forrester Research analyst. Given Google's brand recognition and influence, she predicted that other software makers "are going to be gunning to get into that bundle."
"It does appear that it is a shot across the bow of Microsoft," said Michael Gartenberg, a Jupiter Research analyst.
Earlier in the day at the Consumer Electronics Show, Yahoo Chief Executive Terry Semel announced a new service, dubbed Yahoo Go, designed to give consumers a way to share and synchronize media and information among their computers, television sets and mobile phones.
The service includes a remote-controlled computer interface for browsing and viewing media on a large screen in a living room. The company said that interface runs on top of Microsoft's Windows XP operating system. At the same time, it duplicates and could compete with some of the functions of Microsoft's Media Center PC operating system.
Leading up to the appearance by Google's Page, the tech world has been rife with speculation about the potential for a big announcement from Google at the Consumer Electronics Show. One theory had the company releasing a low-cost PC, running not on Microsoft Windows but rather on its own operating system. The company denied that theory.
The increasing level of competitive tension between Microsoft and Google was brought into public view last year, when Microsoft filed suit in a bid to block Google from employing a prized researcher, Kai-Fu Lee, who left the Redmond company to join the search giant. The suit has since been settled.
Another sign of the rivalry came last month, when Google paid $1 billion for a 5 percent stake in AOL, maintaining its relationship with the online service and thwarting Microsoft's bid for its own AOL partnership.
Meanwhile, Microsoft and Google have each been moving into the domain of the other. Google, for example, added an on-screen sidebar to its hard-drive search software -- giving Google a physical presence on the Windows desktop.
Microsoft has developed its own Internet search technology to compete with Google and Yahoo, although the MSN Search site remains in third place in market share. The company is currently developing its own online advertising system, to replace technology that it licenses from a Yahoo subsidiary.