Steve Ballmer has a certain inimitable style (I use the term loosely.) This recapitulation of his famous “monkey dance”, delivered last week on a stage in Las Vegas, has Microsoft insiders squirming, but at least it makes a point. The software company now has its sights set on building a technology platform for Web developers, not just the software developers commemorated in Ballmer’s original 2001 outburst.

Google has a quieter way of doing these things, but make no mistake: there is a fight brewing here for hearts and minds. This battle will determine which vision wins out for the next stage in the internet’s evolution as a computing platform.

Google has just reserved San Francisco’s cavernous Moscone Center for a two-day event in May to draw Web developers into its own camp. This is a clear sign of how fast its aspirations have been taking shape. Its first pitch to developers came two years ago with a small conference aimed at people interested in building applications using the Google Maps API. Last year, that turned into a broader developer day that drew 5,000 to San Jose, before graduating this year to the main stage for technology industry convocations.

When I spoke to senior Google product manager Tom Stocky today, he was at pains to play down any suggestion that the internet company was about to go up against companies like Microsoft and Adobe.

“I’m not sure I see it as Google versus anyone else. What we’re really doing is promoting the Web as a platform. There’s no Google agenda.”

Well, up to a point.

Google’s “platform play” has two parts to it. One involves promoting open source tools for Web development - things like the Google Web Toolkit, for writing more effective AJAX applications, or Google Gears, for creating Web applications that can also run offline. Clearly, even if Google does not benefit directly from offering these tools, keeping developers out of the Microsoft and Adobe camps is important.

The other part of Google’s strategy for the May event will be to attract more developers to write applications that ride on top of the internet company’s own services. It has released 40-odd APIs so far, exposing services like YouTube and its Google Docs applications for independent programmers to draw on.

You can expect the blogosphere to be stuffed with laudatory coverage nearer the event about how Google is fostering a more open Web than the one some of its rivals seem to have in mind. Only, don’t expect Eric Schmidt to put on his monkey suit.

March 11th, 2008 in Digital media | Permalink