Recently, Google has been making plans to start an instant messaging service. This is in response to the popularity of other instant messaging programs such as AIM, Skype, Vonage and other internet based platforms. There was speculation on whether Google was going to use the funds from its fairly recent 4 billion dollar stock sale to launch the program, although Google denies this. They say they are going to try and merge there way into the market and fund “Google Talk” with other firms offerings. A smart idea, seeing that many companies are trying to buy their way onto the Google “bandwagon”.
In 2004, Google started their own e-mail service, dubbed “Gmail”. Many suggest that the new Google Talk software is the missing link in the overall success and future of Gmail. By integrating this instant messaging program with their already existing email program, Google hopes to lure more users to sign up for Gmail and thus use Google Talk. Obviously, if the plan works, they will draw huge new revenues with their already dominating advertising market.
One big difference between Google Talk and other instant messaging providers such as Skype and Vonage, will be that it will not allow users to make phone calls to land lines or mobile phones. With the ongoing demand for this type of service, it could possibly be the weakest link in Google’s plan to eventually completely dominate the market. One important factor though, is that Google plans to expand its software so that users can communicate with others on different platforms such as AIM or Yahoo. Industry analysts and experts, however, warn that Google has a lot of ground to make-up in the competition with industry giants aforementioned.