1:45 PM -- Google (Nasdaq: GOOG)'s latest foray into social networking, Google+, might not take down Facebook , but it could make mobile social networking more fun.
Please note: I admit, upfront, that I'm not cool enough to receive a first-round Google+ invite, so my thoughts are based on the insights of those better connected than me. [Ed note: Ha, ha, I'm getting an invite! -- DJ]
Google's new online social network has an Android app in beta and an iPhone app in the works, and is available to all mobile Internet devices via an HTML5 site. What makes it compelling for mobile sharing is that Google has made it easy to tap into the phone's GPS to share location on every post you want to, to use the camera to instantly upload pictures and to take advantage of group messaging to share information only with selected users in your social circle.
As Pyramid Research notes in a recent report, the intersection of location, social and mobile is an exciting place to be. Social networks enjoy the highest online time of any app, and Pyramid says revenue from location-based services will reach $10.3 billion in 2015, up from $2.8 billion in 2010. Combining the two is a powerful proposition. (See All Social, All the Time.)
Plus could easily go the way of Wave and Buzz (even the best club is no fun if you're the only one in it), but Google seems to be using mobility well to complement and strengthen its online proposition.
Any of you privileged Google+ beta users have first impressions to share?
Yes, indeed. The web interface is slick and clean, the Android app is very well done and the privacy features are spot on. And best of all - no annoying Farmville or "pokes"!
Indeed, Facebook should be concerned. They have been able to ride the top of the social networking wave for quite a while without coming out with anything all that new. Sure, they have apps and an API for developers, but they can't compete with Google in the world of development. Google has already almost completely adopted CSS3 and HTML5, making Facebook look like an antique in the web programming world. PHP is still a great language, but many of the reasons Facebook uses PHP is to have the HTML5 look and feel.
I'm anxious to see how Google+ breaks through the gate with subscribers when they're fully released. I think there's a large portion of Facebookers that are ready for a new look and feel that integrates well with the rest of their technology. I can see Google+ working seemlessly with an Android phone, though the Facebook mobile app has never really lived up to anyone's idea of potential.
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