Can Google Sell Anything?
Is Google Base a Trojan Horse? Sure, it attracted a lot of attention when it was unleashes as being a rival to eBay, Craigslist, etc. But the oh-so-quiet move into real estate may be a huge wake-up call about Google's master plan: by leveraging its search technology, Google can use Google Base as a platform to go after any business it desires - be it real estate, classifieds, travel, automobiles, music, etc. Any supplier who has services and products to sell has two options: they can do it themselves by setting up their own e-commerce site and partnering with other players, and/or they can strike a deal with Google Base. While Larry Page and Sergey Brin do not tip their strategic cards too often, my sense is they've adopted a quasi-stealth approach to Google Base because it could turn the e-commerce business upside down. In other words, Google Base can become anything it wants to be - the biggest challenge may be deciding what areas it wants to focus on. Perhaps Google will let the market decide. By establishing a platform, Google can simply encourage whatever businesses start to gain momentum. Then again, it may not matter to Google as long as Google Base becomes the place to buy and sell products and services. In any event, I think we're seeing the start of something big.
For other perspectives, check out InsideGoogle and Mathew Ingram. Google Base's move into real estate was discovered by Shimon Shandler, whose blog appears to have cracked under the pressure of a citation by Steve Rubel.
