buzzYesterday, Google got us all excited again over their new product release – The Google Buzz. No, it’s not another Google Wave. Buzz is Google’s approach to the social networking market. It is more of an extension for existing Gmail users.

After trying it out for a few hours, Google Buzz reminds me of an RSS feed combined with all of social networking neatly packed under the Google infrastructure. In other words, it feels like a clone of FriendFeed.

It’s all fine and dandy for Gmail users but what about those who prefers to use other email services instead? They are left out from the Buzz. It’s only good if you can connect with others on a Google account. The same could be said for Facebook; great for networking but only if you are on Facebook. It’s not possible for me to connect those two together with Buzz.

Facebook’s Dominance

Google is going to have a difficult time building a user base with everyone, when those people who have a Facebook profile can’t see their friends’ updates. This means, they need to continuously use Facebook to keep in touch with their friends.

Facebook has more than 400 million users; making them the world’s largest social networking site. On the other hand, Gmail’s unique visitors numbered around 36 million as of last year. It’s an uphill battle for Google if they’re attempting to challenge the dominance of Buzz.

Conclusion

Google is still going to lose out to Facebook, in terms of web dominance, by the end of 2010. Despite the introduction of Buzz, it still is nothing fantastic in my opinion. Facebook’s rate of growth is threatening Google but the same can’t be said for Google threatening Facebook.

It’s because, Google still doesn’t have that social oomph or special feature that they incentivize people to leave behind their existing networks or spend more time updating and following one another when their friends are already on Facebook.

Facebook’s dominance on the web is so huge that it’s difficult to imagine a competing service that could pry Facebook out of their place; for sure Google Buzz can’t.

Maybe Buzz would be better if they start integrating with Facebook. Unless that happens, Buzz is going to sink to the bottom, like most of Google products.

What do you think of Google Buzz? Share with us your opinions by commenting on this article.

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  • I still haven't fully got to grips with Buzz so I may be generalising a little. To me Buzz is a platform for aggregating various social media platforms (like an rss feed as mentioned earlier). Facebook uses very broad brush strokes and has cornered the mass audience (much like nintendo wii has for gaming). Buzz aggregates sites like Flickr and twitter which are filled with passionate people .i.e. photographers use Flickr as a photo sharing platform over Facebook albums; twitter users may blog more than Facebook users etc.

    I guess what i'm trying to say is Buzz certainly won't set the world on fire, but it is trying to capture a niche: the passionate audience. Also in the UK all my friends don't use twitter so I think its great that my Gmail contacts can see my tweets.

    Btw: I have a new blogpost on my site Facebook: the people search engine ^.^
  • Buzz is like a better version of FriendFeed in my opinion. You may be right on the niche market that Google Buzz is targeting. However, here in Singapore, not a lot of people use Gmail as their primary email account; gravitates more to Hotmail.

    Anyways, I agree with the point made by you on your blogpost: Facebook - The People Search Engine.
  • Much like Singapore, UK users mainly have Yahoo or msn/hotmail email accounts. Google Buzz is definitely a marketing tactic to promote Gmail, and I really want Buzz to succeed if they live up to there promises of social privacy. But I do agree that Facebook is pretty unbeatable right now.

    I don't think friendfeed is used here in UK...I just looked at it and damn, it really does have everything!
  • Mo
  • Your reason for that?
  • Buzz isn't a social network like Facebook. Buzz is a communication tool seamlessly integrated with the best online communication tool out there, Gmail, and published on Google Maps with photo upload capability.

    Facebook shouldn't be worried yet, but Twitter and Foursquare should be shitting their pants.
  • The way Google positioned themselves when they came out with Buzz was almost like a direct challenge to Facebook. I do agree that Buzz isn't a social network but merely a communication tool but for the time being, I do not see Buzz surviving for long.
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