Google Apps Marketplace Opens; Another Bow Shot Across Microsoft's Headquarters

Google's Android operating system (which it gives away for free) competes with the mess that is Windows Mobile. Google's Apps product is meant to be a web-based replacement for some of Microsoft's most lucrative installed software. But Microsoft has a decent presence (if not a huge one) on the business software market for office applications, server environments and e-commerce, among other things. But maybe not any more. Google has announced its Apps Marketplace, where software-as-a-service providers can sell their web-based programs on a per-user cost basis -- all running over the Google Apps infrastructure.

This is where the competitive landscape may start tipping these two mountains toward each other more than before. Microsoft has a whole host of software writers that write programs for its Windows operating system (ahem, cash cow). Getting companies to sell wares through Google Apps (which is, of course, starting small) will be a challenge for at least another five years. By then, more and more will happen over the internet cloud than on hard drives in all those laptops.

The key for Google and its Apps enterprise -- to really compete with Microsoft -- will be to have ubiquitous high-speed internet into every corner of the U.S. Once that happens, Google and Microsoft will be direct competitors. Until then, Google will slowly nibble at Microsoft's pie. Right now, only crumbs are available.