Where is Google Going?

In just seven years, Google, Inc has gone from a simple startup to a leading search engine with the major part of the search engine traffic and $7.1 billion dollars to spend where they will go next. Where will it go? The payroll is now 4200 employees, which is still small compared to Microsoft’s 61,000 workers and $48 billion in cash. But even Microsoft is worried. They’ve lost some of their top people to Google and aren’t happy about it.

Here are some directions to watch:

• One of those people Google took from Microsoft was their key Windows’ architects (Mark Lucovsky). Now look at the features Google is bringing out out, such as the Desktop. Google would love to take the operating system market from Microsoft. There would be an interesting twist in all probability. It would be a Web-hosted alternative to Windows.

• Google plans to announce (if they haven’t already) an alliance with Sun to provide web-based office applications such as a word process, spreadsheet, and more.

• Google’s rolling out free Wi-Fi access, for now only in specific areas of the San Francisco Bay area. All your web traffic would be channeld through Google with this free WiFi. Based on this pilot program, this could expand to other cities. Guess what that means? You get free Internet access, they get to track everything you do.

• Another option might be for Google to purchase a big chunk of AOL Online to stop Microsoft’s attempt for an alliance there. AOL Online is shifting to a free service, with income provided by advertising as with other search engines. AOL Online is a part of Time Warner, enabling Google to become more of a media company.