Google Apps Launches Premier Edition
A while back, I proposed that Google Apps can help cash-strapped young Filipino entrepreneurs establish virtual offices using existing cybercafé infrastructure. Putting my money where my mouth is, I implemented Google Apps for one of my concerns, Pinoy Cosplay.
Proving what’s good for the goose is good for the bigger goose, Google has released a Premier Edition multinationals are willing to pay for.
Features unique to Google Apps Premier Edition include:
* 10 GBs of storage per user – Offers about 100 times the storage of the average corporate mailbox, eliminating the need to frequently delete email.
* APIs for business integration – APIs for data migration, user provisioning, single sign-on, and mail gateways enable businesses to further customize the service for unique environments.
* 99.9 % uptime – Service Level Agreements for high availability of Gmail, with Google monitoring and crediting customers if service levels are not met.
* 24×7 support for critical issues – Includes extended business hours telephone support for administrators.
* Advertising optional – Advertising is turned off by default, but businesses can choose to include Google’s relevant target-based ads if desired.
* $50 per user account per year – Simple and affordable annual fee makes it practical to offer these applications to everyone in the organization.
It isn’t just the geeky smarty-pants companies trying this stuff out. Charter customers include GE and P&G. While I’m surprised Google didn’t throw in IMAP support — most corporate email is IMAP — 10GBs per user is still quite generous. Also beefing itself up for the enterprise, Google Spreadsheets is about to get charts.
You can try the Premier Edition for free until April 30, 2007. Until now, Google Apps has strictly been the province of small-to-medium scale enterprises. By entering the large enterprise space, Google Apps now steps into Microsoft Office turf.
Google Buys Gamevertising Startup Adscape
Coming soon: in-game AdSense. After Microsoft bought gamevertising company Massive last year, I figured it wouldn’t be long before Google followed suit.
Following a Wall Street Journal report that surfaced late last month, industry sources have confirmed that Google has indeed entered the in-game advertising space. According to business publication Red Herring, Google has reached an agreement to purchase Adscape Media for a cool $23 million.
Adscape, a company that officially launched in February of last year, hasn’t firmly established its position in the in-game advertising market and the company has not gotten the kind of attention that Massive, IGA or Double Fusion have received, but what Adscape does give Google is some interesting technology patents. And with Google’s vast resources, the company could no doubt leverage the in-game ad tech to eventually gain a solid foothold in the space.
William Slawski lists those interesting technology patents here. Adscape’s lack of existing advertiser relationships shouldn’t be a problem, thanks to AdWords’ massive roster of advertisers. Since we’re at the start of an online advertising boom right now, expect to see more free ad-supported games in the years to come.
Despite having the biggest game portal among the Big Three, Yahoo is running late to the gamevertising game. Google’s purchase should be a wake-up call to them.
