Apple & Google
posted in Strategy, Software |Since Google CEO Eric Schmidt joined Apple’s board, there’s been lots of speculation about how the two companies will combine forces to compete against Microsoft. Observers have suggested just about every possibility, including merger or acquisition (I doubt it). The latest credible report on possible ties comes from Newsweek’s Steven Levy, who writes that Google confirmed talks with Apple. The article and confirmation by Marissa Mayer only say that the companies are talking, and not necessarily about this type of integration, but the context of Levy’s article leads you to believe that this is the case.
Regardless, many expect to see deeper collaboration between Apple and Google. Apple already includes a Google search function in it’s Safari browser, and Google makes Mac OS X versions of several appliations, including Google Earth and Google Sketch Up. What else might they do together? Here’s what I’d like to see, some of which has been suggested elsewhere.
Improvements to .mac user interfaces: I’ve had .mac since it was a free service, and I pay the annual fee mostly so I can continue to use the email address I’ve had for years. I only very occasionally use the other services, mostly because they fall short of my expectations for modern websites. Some of Google’s services (Gmail, Calendar, etc.) can already be privately branded, and I’d love to see several of Google’s web-based applications branded as .mac applications. For example, Apple’s webmail leaves a lot be desired; how about a .mac branded version of Gmail?
Tight integration between desktop applications and web services: The next logical step would be to create really tight integration between Apple’s desktop applications and Google’s web-based versions. As .mac is an option in Mail’s preferences for type of account (along with POP, IMAP, etc.), so would Gmail. Similarly, perhaps the protocols for iCal can be changed to work more like email, such that syncronization between iCal and Google Calendar happen automatically, either instantaneously or on a regular schedule. Or iPhoto’s albums might have a preference that allows them to automatically be published on Picasa (and perhaps iPhoto become’s Picasa’s Macintosh client).
Really tight integration between desktop apps and web services: Some Apple applications don’t have any kind of web tie-ins, notably iWork (Keynote, Pages, and the long-rumored spreadsheet application). I love Google’s Writely, but don’t want to lose the control over design and local editing that I now enjoy with Pages. A Pages preference would allow me to sync with Writely, so that if I’m working on a proposal in Pages at the office, then decide to edit it from home, I would simply need to log in to Writely and edit the text. When I return to the office the next day and launch Pages, the text changes would be in my file, incorporating the appropriate style characteristics. This functionality would be equally useful for Keynote and the rumored spreadsheet application (syncing with Google Spreadsheets).
I’m not sure that I’d actually want to browse Google Video through my iTV. But I’m certain that I’d be more likely to use .mac if it continued to feature strong connections with Apple’s iLife, and featured Google-like web user interfaces. And I’d be really jazzed to see integration with Pages and Writely, and other desktop and webtop applications from Apple and Google, respectively.
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