Back to Google TV…
informitv’s William Cooper says its early days for Google TV – “it is not as if everything Google touches turns to gold… It’s success in television is far from certain”. However, it is approaching the connected television game from a different perspective, which is why it just might be successful…
Google TV promises to combine the experience of television with that of the internet to create a genuinely open platform for innovation. Google has little to lose and everything to gain. So where does that leave prospective platforms like YouView that are largely driven by the ambitions of broadcasters? Why could Google succeed where others have so far failed?
Google TV will provide a platform for independent developers to create applications, much as they can do for smart phones. The result will be a smart television.
More people use televisions than mobile phones or computers. Knowing how the web radically transformed those devices, Google TV hopes to see what it can do for the most ubiquitous screen in the world.
Soon after launch, a Google TV software development kit and web application programming interfaces will be released. Google TV uses the open source Android operating system originally developed for mobile phones. Applications for television will be made available through the Android Market.
Many had hoped for something similar from the latest version of Apple TV, based on the phenomenal success of applications on other Apple iOS devices like the iPhone and the iPad. Although not available yet on the Apple TV, it seems inevitable that Apple will open the product up to such applications, if only in response to Google TV.
The difference is that Google TV promises to be more open than the Apple world, which brings both advantages and disadvantages.
So which platforms will developers target? Probably the ones with the most users and the ability to reach the widest audience and deliver the highest revenues.
Where does that leave platforms like YouView, the joint venture between British broadcasters and network operators, which has yet to launch and has released only sketchy specifications? At a distinct disadvantage, one might suppose.
Google has little to lose in giving away a platform for internet television, and everything to gain from its adoption.
It is early days for Google TV, which currently has virtually no share of the television market. It is not as if everything Google touches turns to gold. Its success in television is far from certain.
Some have suggested that Google needs a more powerful programming proposition, but that may be missing the point. The opportunity for Google is to gain a deeper insight into user behaviour across television and the web.
Unlike many major media companies, that generally consider themselves to be in the content business, Google is in the advertising business, from which it derives the vast majority of its revenue.
Consequently, Google is approaching the connected television game from a perspective that is orthogonal to most in the market. Which is why it just might be successful.
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