Apple and Google Working Together

Wired

Rough Type - Bait

Cringely's Answer

Rough Type - Response


They discuss the possibilities of Apple and Google working on a front-end (Apple) and back-end (Google) solution where you have an intuitive consumer device that accesses Google's servers, storage, and services.

As a consumer, I like the idea. I loved the Newton and would love to see an elegant hand-held device that brings back those capabilities and augments them with access to Google's SaaS offerings.

But as much as I like the idea, I have trouble imagining a scenario where Apple and Google to put it all together. For it to make sense to Apple, they would need some level of exclusivity, something to draw people to the Mac, iPhone, and their other hardware products. But for Google, they would want the widest audience possible for their ads and services.

The only thing I can imagine working would be a case where Apple gets some time-limited exclusivity (maybe 6 months) and adds some Apple-exclusive features via integration with their operating system(s). Google might be willing to go this route, because it would give them a ramp-up period with a controlled number of users, and the service would get huge amounts of publicity by association with the juggernaut that is Apple.

What services would they offer? I think the obvious ones are what is already available: Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, (a new version of) Picasa, and maybe things like Google Finance. The main problem with this scenario is ... .Mac . Apple already offers many of these services in one way or another. So, either Apple would need to replace .Mac with this Apple/Google service or they would need to add significant value for their customers.