Kyle, I agree with your analysis. Another scary issue is that we, as product developers, are increasingly integrating Google in to our products. Perhaps we ought to add Google into our Risk Analysis Tables (which ironically could be hosted by Google Docs).  
 
Where would it end? We would really need to concern ourselves, if Google go ahead and buy couple of islands... 
 
regards 
Manoj 

Google Buzz is not the most innovative products that Google has released but it makes sense (putting all social communication in one location- email, real time blogging, connections). I was impressed with the way in which they announced, updated the product within 48 hours of the privacy backlash by listening to their customers.I still believe that Google is not inherently evil, if they decided to use the information they have about me in a devious fashion, I could just move to another provider; plus they provide a ton of value at no charge for a lot of their product. It will be interesting to see how this evolves

An interesting theory, although I can't see Google having the desire to "pop the social media bubble." It's a battle for mindshare w/ Facebook and Buzz has already integrated Twitter and other networks so they're just trying to carve into the time people spend sharing updates and media on FB. That said, there's nothing all that buzzworthy about Buzz...until the personal info/search results connection can be drawn.

@Dan Tyre, I like your comment about just moving to another provider. 
 
No one forces us to use Google. It's just the most comprehensive product out there and, here in the US, we like to use the best. If you don't like their style, go somewhere else.

I really don't like Google buzz. I don't wanna have a social network in my webmail.

I am hoping that Google will solve the problem of so many interfaces by becoming the central repository that coordinated all of the social input. But this just plays into your "Google as Evil" theory. Ha!

I agree with you on all points. I think that Buzz is designed to target FB/Twitter users and honestly? Twitter is really not that well understood or used by a lot of people stillso they could be successful. I think what we have here is a case of Google trying to make major Social Media go the way of ICQ/AIM. And the sheer amount of information they have is scary. I like Google, I use gmail, I like Google Apps and we have a couple google phones in the house... but I'm seriously considering switching things up just for the reasons you have outlined here. Thanks.

Kyle and Manoj, I agree with both of you. Google is a giant monopoly in the internet advertising space. It is perceived as "Good" to most people only because it allows you to use its tool for free. What most people didn't seem to realize is, we're giving out and giving up so much data about ourselves and our usage behaviors for Google that we don't necessary want to give out, especially for free. Yet, we've very little control about it.

Google's "FREE" tool is not really "free". It's just a mix of cross-subsidy and three-party pricing models to support its enormous money making machine wrapped under a nice PR package cover. We should all be aware that our collective user profiles and online behaviors is the key business driver that supports the Google's business model. How Google gathers, links and subsequently target us as online consumers should be a concern not only on privacy, but also on business ethics as well.

Great article!

This was informative. Thanks.

Are Google on the same path as Microsoft - great product becomes a monopoly who then cause concern with the use of their power which turns people off? 
They're becoming a little too aggressive in the pursuit of their goals.

I use social media A LOT and I use Gmail, Reader and Chrome a lot, but when Google put Buzz in my Gmail account with no warning and started linking private conversations with public, I pulled the plug. I still have a profile, but enough's enough. 
 
BTW, Karen's comment about Google having enough info to build an exact clone gave me a thought about what Google's NEXT BIG THING should be: Match Making! Just think: no more singles bars, speed dating, or match.com! Just click a box that says 'looking' on your profile and Google will link you with everyone who shares your politics, income bracket and taste in Cuban-Chinese food!  
 
Anyway, that could fill the void at least until Google starts really cloning us, which I think is at least a year away.

Great comments everyone! It's good to see people really thinking about this and that they understand Google's main motivations... still the dollar! They are after all a business.  
 
My main goal with the article was to educate and keep people thinking! Keep brainstorming!

I love google but honestly speaking they are turning into a scary monster, only time will tell though?

Yes, Google is a little scary. Recently they banned my Adwords account and won't give me any way to re-instate it. They said my landing page was low in quality. I checked all the rules and followed them. But now it doesn't matter. Can't advertise w/ Google anymore. It really felt like Big Brother.

Bravo, Kyle! You're one of a few who understand the concept that Google is, indeed, an advertising company. Search doesn't generate revenues - ads do. 
 
Jason Calacanis was very impressed with Google Buzz and called it a 'Facebook killer' in his email to subscribers. He even opined that Google Buzz could reduce the estimated market value of Facebook by 50%! 
 
While Google probably knows a boatload of information about many people, Facebook isn't any better. Worse, Facebook's privacy fiascoes don't make me trust them any more than Google.  
 
There will always be an "anti-Google" crowd and I think that's a good thing. Just like with government, if we trust them implicitly, we're bound to get screwed. Thanks for a great post.

Nice post.. But if "97% of Google's revenue comes from selling online advertising", why would google want to kill the social media buzz. I'm sure the social media adds some chunk to its ad business.  
Google launched Google Video, which couldn't keep up with Youtube. They wanted a pie of online video business (through ads or otherwise) and bought youtube - remember the money they paid for it? :) 
I still believe that Google wants a pie of the social media buzz; and Wave, Buzz (and trying to purchase twitter)are its attempts toward it.  
what do you think?

A very interesting and thought-provoking article. It makes me think that George Orwell could have named his most famous novel "Google" intead of "1984."

I think you make some good points, but it doesn't seem like Google Buzz is (currently) poised to overtake Facebook and Twitter. One, it's simply an aggregation tool. It doesn't publish to Facebook or Twitter on it's own. (There are Gmail gadgets however that allow to check both within Gmail).  
 
 
 
We've all heard the privacy issues that Buzz generated the first few days, but Google has already addressed those. Displaying who you follow is now optional. And you can completely shut off Buzz too. So it's not like Google is forcing us to use it. 
 
 
 
And if Buzz is clogging up your inbox, there are some tactics you can use to fight the noise. First, add a Gmail filter named "label:buzz" and have it sent to archive automatically. And you can also mute specific posts as well once they become no longer valuable.

I am not a GMail user. I know that might sound criminal but I am loyal to Yahoo. The attempts Yahoo has had with trying to integrate their social apps does not seem to work. I think Google is trying to take over the world and might be fishing in too many ponds.

You hit a few meaty topics: 
 
1. Yes, Google is big and needs to be made more transparent if not outright checked. In particular, their recent deal with the NSA to combat hacking into their networks makes me wonder if the NSA will gain useful information needed to create a backdoor to their networks? What sort of agreement, in other words, underlies their contract with the NSA (and any similar vendor)? These are answers that should be explored and reported. 
 
But the real underlying question, not only with Google Buzz but also Facebook and Twitter is at what point do these services become public utilities where the interests of society becomes equal to and greater than the mercenary interests of the companies? At what point does social media become critical enough to the social fabric to warrant regulation and forced transparency and standards of behavior? 
 
Since around 1980-1985 monopolies and consolidation have been considered normal and good in any industry. But they are not. They stifle innovation and they often cause conflicts with the greater interests of society. It's a fluke the internet got started and eBay, Google, and others were able to create something from almost nothing. But it is unlikely to stay that way for long unless people and governments insist otherwise. 
 
2. The most obvious solution to the "Google wants to kill Twitter and Facebook" meme/threat is to demand open standards. Let Google build Buzz but let's make sure it works in FB and Twitter. Same for those services. Interoperability is key to preventing any company from using monopoly power to crush innovation from competitors (and, for that matter, to spur monopolies or near monopolies to innovate).

Or...Google is just introducing a new product to serve a (mostly) new market. 
 
As marketers, we tend to focus on the cutting edge of market trends. But let's not forget that social media adoption rates are still relatively low. Email adoption rates are much higher--so adding a social integration component to email makes good sense, for Google and for customers. 
 
And yes, Google will be able to place more ads in front of more eyeballs. 
 
Google has little to gain from ousting Twitter or Facebook. These services offer more than just social sharing of content--they foster content creation. More content=more data. As such, Google has everything to gain from becoming a redistribution hub for that content. Hence, Google Buzz. 
 
As consumers, we exchange our information and privacy for convenience all the time. We have ever since the advent of delivery (milk, mail, packages...). Just think about how much your bank or credit card company knows about you. 
 
Google is not a monopoly. They have large competitors in every business they are in: search, email, software, operating systems, mobile platforms, and social media. In fact, in all of these categories except search, they are not even in the top two! 
 
Stop the paranoia! Let's instead discuss the potential marketing implications of a new service, and how to exploit them for our respective businesses.

my two bits: 
 
 
 
1. i like theway buzz got itself inside my mailbox login. 
 
 
 
2. even now, the signal to noise ratio is to be taken care of... 
 
 
 
3. just scares me into stop using google as my primary email, as by now, my clone must be in manufacturing process...all my search traits, mail content, youtube favourites and comments, blog postings, website analytics, documents, umm may be something got left out...whatever...scarrryy enuf to go hide under a rock for sometime...