7 Reasons 2013 Was the Year of Google
Google celebrated its 15th anniversary this year, but showed none of
the creeping complacency that have derailed other dominant tech
companies. For the search giant, 2013 was simply another year during
which it solidified its place in the center of just about every area of
the Internet economy.
Of the four horsemen of the Internet age along with Apple, Facebook
and Amazon (Samsung is angling to be No. 5), Google is the only one to
compete in all areas including hardware, social networking, retail, TV
and, of course, search. Though it performs better in some areas versus
others (ahem, Google Plus), you can't completely count Google out in any
of them. Despite this seeming lack of focus, Google has managed to make
huge gains this ear.
This success was the result of a variety of new products releases and
acquisitions, from Google Glass to the Moto X to Chromecast. We've
rounded up some of Google's most important moments over the past year that contributed to its exponential rise.
1. Google Glass
Since 2007 when Apple introduced the iPhone,
Google has been playing catchup. This strategy has proven extremely
effective: In 2013, for the first time, the mantle of innovation was
passed from Apple to Google. This was largely possible because of Google Glass, the first optically-driven wearable computer aimed at general consumers.
Glass isn't set to hit the mass market until 2014, but the company
began disseminating units to an unspecified number of "explorers" early
this year. That led to a wave of publicity, then a backlash and now, as
the year comes to a close, continued uncertainty about the viability of
the category.
Google Glass's primary issue is a chicken-and-egg problem: Since so
few people own a pair, they are not yet socially acceptable. A major
part of the Glass experience is receiving weird looks from others.
Google could work out some of those kinks; a partnership with
fashionable eyewear brand Warby Parker,
for example, would likely yield some less geeky designs. Even if Glass
is a colossal flop, though, the product has succeeded it making Apple
look comparatively timid with its lineup of mildly tweaked phones
(think: the iPhone 5C and 5S) and tablets and rumored iWatch.
2. Android Takes 81% of the Market
Though many consumers continue to equate the smartphone with the iPhone,
four-fifths
of all smartphones actually sport Android. That means that the
smartphone market is shaping up to look a lot like the PC segment, with
Google playing the role of Microsoft. But
while Windows is a cash cow for Microsoft, Google doesn't actually make any money from Android.
while Windows is a cash cow for Microsoft, Google doesn't actually make any money from Android.
Instead, Android is designed to sell advertising. With such a large
chunk of the market, Google has brilliantly transitioned from the
desktop era to the mobile age. Of course, that's not how Apple sees it. In a September interview with
Bloomberg Businessweek, Apple CEO Tim Cook
cited stats showing that despite Android's market-share dominance, 55%
of mobile traffic comes from iOS devices. Cook also indirectly dubbed
many of Android-based devices as "junk." Again, this is a moot point
when your intention is to sell ads.
3. Google Buys Waze for $1.1 Billion
The world earned new respect for Google Maps in 2012 after Apple's
disastrous introduction of Maps. But the mapping category keeps
evolving. Waze, an Israeli company, was ahead of the curve with
incorporating real-time information, like traffic, into maps. Many
realized Waze was one of very few companies to offer such data along
with its own credible mapping infrastructure, which set off a bidding
war that reportedly included Apple and Facebook. In the end, Google won and, as a result, maintained its reputation as the Internet's premiere cartographer.
4. Moto X Launches
In August, Google announced
the Moto X, the first smartphone designed together by Google and its
Motorola unit. (This was also the first major release to follow the
company's $12 billion purchase of Motorola.) Though the Moto X received
positive reviews, it lacked any strong differentiator. Even its
Touchless Control, which brings your phone to life by uttering "OK
Google now," appeared in a new line of Verizon Droid smartphones the
week before the Moto X was unveiled.
In other words, this wasn't seen as a breakthrough — a tough
challenge with so many other Android manufacturers. Moto, which was seen
as a hedge against patent trolls, has not yet seamlessly integrated
into the company and appears to be just one of many partners, albeit one
that Google owns.
5. The Introduction of Chromecast
After non-starters like Google TV and the Nexus Q, Google tried once again to colonize the TV with Chromecast,
a dongle that looks like a USB drive. Instead of plugging into a USB
port, though, Chromecast attaches to a TV's HDMI port and lets you beam
content from your computer, phone or tablet onto a TV.
Like Apple TV, Chromecast is a workaround rather than an
all-encompassing solution. And like Apple TV, it seems to be finding its
audience. In October, Google's new apparatus was the
best-selling gadget on Amazon.
6. Google Stock Hits $1,000
In October, Google stock entered the four-figure range, joining an
elite club including Priceline, Seaboard and Berkshire Hathaway. Such
psychological barriers are often meaningless — a looming stock split
will send it back to three digit territory soon — but it underscored
the company's stellar financial performance this year.
7. Google Play Passes 50 Billion App Downloads
This summer, just as Apple announced 50 billion downloads on the App
Store, Google was also crowing about the same number of downloads.
Google Play launched as Android Market just a few months after the App
Store in 2008. However, for much of the ensuing period, Google Play was
seen as an also-ran next to the App Store. This is partially because
developers generally release iOS versions of their apps ahead of their
Android iterations — in fact, often months ahead.
That may be changing. With more than 80% of the global market,
justifying an iOS-first strategy is increasingly difficult. If Android
does get the edge in new development, it will be harder for consumers to
defend their devotion to iOS as well.
The big question I had personally was whether users would understand
the concept of the lockscreen” Cover founder Todd Jackson tells me about
what he’s learned from its thousands of beta testers since October.
“Turns out they do. We were specifically focused on building a
lockscreen rather than a launcher. They like the flexibility of being
able to use Cover with other launchers.”
