Jimmy

I love Google. I’m not one of those people that worries about privacy issues with my searches or emails as I believe that Google actually follows, for the most part, it’s motto of “Don’t Be Evil.”

So naturally I’m really happy this evening to hear that Google is entering the Operating System Wars with Google Chrome OS which seems, at first blush, like it might actually take a good-sized bite out of Microsoft’s OS market share and therefore make the world a better place. (Setting aside my personal thoughts about Windows for a second, I don’t think any company, be it Microsoft, Google, Apple or any number of Linux companies, should have a 90%+ market share in any market.) Google Chrome OS seems like an awesome step into the future of computing, and while I think that it will probably never achieve majority market share, I do think it will do reasonably well, especially if Google pulls it off, which seems likely given the company’s past successes.

But for the first time ever, tonight I am worried about Google becoming too large. I like everything the company does, but just like I don’t like Microsoft on the principle of Windows owning the OS market, I worry about Google owning over 80% of the search market and making inroads into so many other markets as well. If Google does manage to pull off getting Chrome OS onto millions of Netbooks over the next few years and the OS catches on and starts pulling market share from Windows, will anything be different? My hope is that Chrome OS (which is built on the Linux kernel) will help pull down Windows’ market share and open the door for Mac OS X and other flavors of Linux to rush in, as well as Chrome OS, but I fear what it would mean if Chrome OS pulling market share away from Windows is all that happens. So if Microsoft’s Bing takes off and pulls searchers away from Google and Chrome OS pulls users away from Windows, nothing will have changed: two huge companies will still control the vast majority of OSes and web searches. Big deal.

I’m not an expert on monopolies and antitrust issues, but I finally think it might be time for someone who is to take a hard look at Google, its products, projects and goals and to see if Google might just be getting a little too big for its britches. If not, I’ll be happy. If so, well, I won’t be surprised.

Here’s to Chrome OS taking Windows down a peg or two*, and lifting all the second-tier OSes up in its place.

Cheers,
-j

*Say, 20-40%? That’d give Windows a still very healthy 50%-70% share of the market.

Posted in: Technology by jimmy2 /