Google Apps + MFP = Independent MPS

Which IT person is going to look down their nose at a "copier" sales person who is partnered with Google? Consider the brand power of "Family Owned Copy Shop, A Google Partner." All it needs is a logo.





Last week the battle was joined when Google announced Chrome OS. I got the point to the Baltimore Sun article from twitter.

myunblinkingeyehttp://bit.ly/G7WEc Clash of the Internet titans http://bit.ly/wQgYw

The article is about Google v Microsoft, but it's the start of a global struggle for control of the mobile web.

Clash of the Internet titans -
baltimoresun.com:

. . . .whom do you root for in Microsoft vs. Google? Perhaps, at this point, we should simply cheer that there's any competition at all."

I would frame it as facilitated user network enterprises v value chain enterprises. It's Google, Amazon, Apple v Microsoft, IBM, HP. Underlying that titanic war is another that might even be bigger: telecoms and handset makers fighting for control of the infrastructure.

Microsoft owns the network. IBM and HP "own" enterprise computing. Google, Amazon and Apple don't own anything, they facilitate exchange through the Cloud. Google mostly facilitates information exchange. Amazon mostly facilitates stuff exchange. Apple mostly facilitates media exchange. But all three continue to grow. The power and value of networks increase with the square of the number of users.

Consider Google

Google has translated its search engine success into a growing number of Web-based services, including Google News; Gmail; Google Video; Google Maps; the controversial Google Books Library Project, in which universities from around the world have opened their libraries for Google to scan and compile; and a mobile phone operating system, Android.

The writer left out Google Apps. That's where Google meets MPS. Google Apps is moving into enterprise intranets. Clip on the MPFs and a Print button on that's MPS.

Google Apps + MFP = Independent MPS
I assume, but don't know, that the serious players in MFP are Google enabled. All I'm trying to say is that they can seamlessly clip into the Cloud. HP's TouchSmart is a touchscreen on a printer. Nice. It's a game advancer, but it's not a game changer. I know that Sharp is designed for seamless integration with the Cloud.

Meanwhile Google Apps continues to make headway in government and education enterprises. They have a reseller program. They do all the support and customer service. It should be an easy sell for independent MPS.