Google Aims at Microsoft With Biz Apps

TechFlash reports: Google's launch of a new Google Apps Marketplace for third-party business applications feels like the guy in the big house at the end of the block inviting the rest of the neighborhood over for a party.

And for people who follow Microsoft's partnership strategies, the approach being taken by the search company will be very familiar. This line from Google's announcement stood out, in particular.

"We're often asked when we'll offer a wider variety of business applications — from accounting and project management to travel planning and human resources management," wrote Chris Vander Mey, product Manager for the Google Apps Marketplace. "But we certainly can't and won't do it all, and there are hundreds of business applications for which we have no particular expertise."

That's the essence of a platform in the technology business. Google's attempt to build one for online business applications is notable for the potential opportunities it gives smaller firms, and the potential threat it poses to established players, most notably Microsoft Office.

Google says it will take a 20 percent cut of the revenue from apps sold in the marketplace, in return for providing a direct link to the businesses using Google Apps, which now number more than 2 million, according to the company.

Several companies are taking part in the Google Apps Marketplace launch, including Skytap, Concur and Smartsheet.com, whose chairman, Brent Frei, recently addressed the Google Apps vs. Microsoft Office competition in this recent TechFlash guest post. In an email, Frei describes the Apps Marketplace as "extremely vendor-friendly" and says it escalates Google's competition with Microsoft in business apps.

One final item of interest: The Google vice president who made the Apps Marketplace announcement, Vic Gundotra, headed Microsoft's outreach to third-party software developers before joining Google.