Biz Poll Results: Google And Free
On Monday, we started a poll asking readers if they thought offering free software and services cheapened Google’s brand name. Of those responding, 16 percent said YES and 84 percent said NO.
Is Google undercutting the value of its own brand by giving away everything free?
That’s an interesting implication raised by the statement that the Yankee Group just sent out about the announcement of a Google operating system for PCs.
The research firm argues that the real winner of the battle between Google and Microsoft is Apple. That may be overstated, but it raises an interesting point about the gaps in what Google has offered consumers.
Google is as well-known as any company in the world, and it has earned a reputation for technological innovation. But so far its products are not consistent, easy to use and interconnected the way Apple’s are.
“What’s really hurting Google’s ambitions is its inability to build a brand ecosystem,” the Yankee analyst Joshua Martin wrote. “With the announcement of the Chrome OS, Google has missed the chance to weave a consistent story for consumers.”
But is Google squandering some of what may be the best brand yet created this century by positioning its operating system as cheaper than Windows? What would happen if the company made the Google name worth paying extra for?
Photo by Google.
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