Google Circles, a social media service run by search giant Google, is rumored to be announced at this year's SXSW Interactive festival. ReadWriteWeb is reporting that the announcement could take place as soon as today.
Google Circles will aim to take on Facebook, complete with status messages and photo and video sharing. Where Google Circles diverges slightly from Facebook is that Circles updates will be shared with "the most appropriate circle" of contacts -- not just all of your friends. While Facebook offers that functionality through custom lists and privacy settings, a built-in feature that doesn't require manual tweaking would be a boon to those who juggle personal and professional relationships online.
ReadWriteWeb writer Marshall Kirkpatrick writes that Google Circles may address some of the privacy issues critics identify in social networking, "...allow[ing] our online communication to respect the same boundaries that our offline social lives do."
Tech sites such as TechCrunch have reported on Google Circles using names such as Google +1 and Google Me. The gallery above features a screenshot leaked to TechCrunch in December that shows a social media avatar on the top right portion of the Google toolbar. While final details on Google Circles won't be available until the launch, this teaser holds great promise for Google in the social networking sphere.
Facebook Killers
Google Circles to be Announced at SXSW Interactive Festival
Trend Themes
1. Social Media Segmentation - Major social networks will increasingly adopt a service segmentation strategy to help users differentiate among personal, work and minor acquaintances in what represents a disruptive innovation opportunity for companies designing corresponding privacy tools.
2. Privacy-respectful Online Networking - Privacy-respectful online communication will increase as companies include more advanced features aimed at allowing users the same social boundaries online as exist offline, indicating an opportunity for programming services that address the management of multiple circles of personal and professional contacts.
3. Google-based Social Network - The introduction of Google Circles is expected to establish a competing social network powered by web giants such as Google, which indicates an opportunity both for rival social networks and for software development companies to expand offerings and compete in this space.
Industry Implications
1. Social Media - The social media industry will be disrupted as Google, Facebook and other major social media companies engage in increasingly encrypted and personalized online communication offerings with alluring privacy-cognizant attributes.
2. Internet Technology - Internet tech companies will need to work hard to keep up with agile innovation to keep up with the rapidly changing landscape of social media, developing privacy-respectful social media platforms and services that position themselves comparatively as visionary leaders.
3. Online Security - The online security industry could be affected as more businesses become skeptical of storing sensitive information on social media sites due to the increasing range of encryptions and offerings designed to specifically target different personal and professional relationships.