It’s time once again for Google I/O, and the company plans to pack a week’s worth of announcements into a single keynote address, so this should be interesting.
Take a look back at our live coverage of Google’s flagship conference, which started at 9am PT Wednesday. We’re not expecting as major a news event as we have in past years, but there will be no shortage of updates to the company’s plans for Android, Chrome, YouTube, and its cloud-computing services. We’ll have a full contingent of GigaOM reporters at the show bringing you updates both here and throughout the course of the day, so stay tuned.
So far, Google has announced:
- 900 million Android activations
- Three new Google Maps location APIs
- Synced Google Cloud Messaging accounts, which will let you sync notifications across devices.
- New Google Play Game Services features that can do multiplayer gaming through Google+
- Android Studio, a new development environment for Android app developers.
- A new design for the Google Play app store that highlights tablet apps.
- Google Play Music All Access, a subscription music service.
- A new educational initiative involving Android tablets and apps for education.
- Sweeping updates to Google+, including a new stream design.
- Conversational search within Chrome.
- Big changes to Google Maps.
And after 3.5 hours, we’re done! Thanks so much for following along, guys!
“Unfortunately I don’t get to program that much. But I can do most of the things I need to do to run the company on my phone.”
“Ultimately, the only answer is that we have to start early. And get more women and girls excited about technology. And there’s no question that if we do that we’ll more than double the progress.”
Yeahhhh. First question about how to bring more women into the audience. “We’ve been super focused on that forever,” Larry says.
Larry says he thinks a lot of people have concerns about disclosing medical advice publicly because of insurance issues. Clearly big on the importance of healthcare.
“I disclosed yesterday my voice issues. And I got so many great emails from people, and thoughtful advice. And we think some of this should be private, but in my case I wish I would have done it sooner.”
“I also think we need to be honest about the impact of changes, and we should be humble about that.”
“I think people are naturally concerned about change,” he says. “The pace of change in the world is increasing.”
“Hopefully 50 years from know, our software understands what you’re knowledgeable about and what you’re not.”
“If you’re going to make a smartphone for a dollar, that’s almost impossible to do, but if you took a 50 year longview, you’d take the longview, and eventually you’d figure out how to make money.” Says it’s all about the longview in lowering the cost of technology.
“We’re trying to get the base thing so we can get happy users,” he says. In other words, we build the Glass, you develop for it.
Having Glass for hands-free navigation, or life with small kids, is great, he says.
In the beginning these crazy projects are just “small checks,” Larry says, so they don’t have a significantly negative business impact, and potentially big upside for Google in the long-run.
“Every time we’ve tried to do something crazy we’ve made progress. Not all the time, but a lot of the time.”
Larry refers to Google X on a question about Google getting into more “physical” products such as fiber, automated cars and such. “It’s about atoms, not bits.”
Fiber will allow us to connect more computers and let them do more exciting things, he says. “Gigabits are just the beginning,” he says.
Ooh, hope Stacey is watching. We have our first Google Fiber question. “From an engineering point of view, it’s a no-brainer,” Larry responds.
Larry notes that Eric Schmidt has been “traveling the world” working on these issues globally.
A question about how Google will protect freedom of speech.
Based on Larry’s answer to the next question, it’s clear he wants more openness in the industry instead of a “zero sum” game. Microsoft now supports Google messaging in Outlook, but Microsoft didn’t reciprocate, he says.
And Robert Scoble has the first question. Larry says he didn’t appreciate the Google Glass picture of Robert in the shower. ;)
Crazy, he’s going to take questions. Line up and ask Larry all the questions you want.
“Computer science has a marketing problem. We’re the nerdy curmudgeons. Well I don’t know about you, but I am.”
“Sergey and I talk a lot about cars, he’s working on automated cars now, so imagine how automated cars would change the landscape?” Talks about the potential for fewer parking lots, fewer accidents, shorter commutes, etc.
This is a good genuine speech by Larry: getting to the heart of what technology can help us accomplish, where we came from and how much opportunity there is ahead.
“That’s what technology allows us to do. It allows us to free up to do other things.”
“Every story I read about Google is us versus some other company, or some stupid thing, and I don’t find it that interesitng. We should be building things that don’t exist.” — Larry. “Being negative is not how we make process. Most important things are not zero sum. There’s a lot of opportunity out there.”
Every day I come to work, and the list of things that need to be done is longer than the day before, he says. We at Google, and all of you, are only at one percent of what is possible, maybe even less than that.
“We’re just getting started,” he tells us. “We haven’t seen this rate of change in computing in a long time.”
Nearly three hours in, the crowd had been getting pretty restless. But everyone is quiet and listening now.
“I’m tremendously excited about all the innovation you’re bringing to life. Technology should do the hard work, so people can get on to doing the things that make them happiest in life.”
Amazing the increase in silence (if that makes sense) in the crowd as Larry speaks.
Page’s post this week on his vocal-cord issues:
Larry’s voice is definitely weak; sad to hear about his vocal cord issues.
“Android and things like that are being adopted much faster than anything in the past,” he says.
He’s telling us a story about when he was little and he snuck into a robotics conference.
Now Larry Page takes the stage.
You can try out the new Google Maps today. “The perfect thing to try with your new PIxel!”
Most impressive view of real-time Earth in space, complete with stars in the right place. All in the browser. Available today.
You can watch the sun set on Google Maps, people. “This is the future,” they tell us.
You can zoom out and see the whole world! Google tells us. (And the clouds? They’re real-time.)
Anyone can upload photos of locations to Google Maps, creating somewhat of a crowdsourced street view experience.
And there are no plug-ins needed for these awesome Earth views. Sweet.
Now we’re looking at some new Google Earth experiences that are available straight in your browser.
Very cool design that shows you the different schedules and timetables for different public transportation options.
You’ll also be able to see public transit info on the maps. As someone who lives in a city without a car, this is key for me.
Interesting that Google keeps saying “the map is the interface.” Nokia execs told me the same thing in 2010.
Clearly Google wants the maps to be a way for you to explore and check out new activities, not just map directions from one place to another.
If Google+ is going to be this heavily used for recommendations, I may need to go through my Circles again. Unless you all promise to be good recommenders, that is.
So if you click on a museum, the map will highlight and name all the small streets around the museum, even if they wouldn’t have otherwise shown up from your current zoom level.
Built into the maps are social recommendations, so if your friends visit or like a location, it can tell you. But you’d have to leave a review or +1 the restaurant to indicate this.
Virtual fly-in to a location (inside) is pretty nifty. It’s like an interior interactive panorama.
And if you tap on a location, it pulls up a box with information about that restaurant (hours, prices, etc), and you can fly “into” the restaurant and see photos.
Huh, so if you search for “sushi” the names of the different restaurants will show up on top of the map, and you can roll your mouse over the name to get a quick review.
The new Google maps are: built for you, immersive imagery, and “the map is the UI.”
These new map features will be coming this summer, we hear.
If I could describe #io13 in one word it would be “unification”. Same features, services, UI and experiences on Chrome and Android.
View of the Golden Gate Bridge street view as a tourist suggestion is suspiciously un-foggy. They should have a fog warning for SF maps….
You can choose from things you want to do “eat,” “shop,” etc., and the map can suggest activities nearby.
And of course, the tablet experience mirrors the phone and web experience. #BeatingYouOverTheHeadWithTheBigTheme
Google is also launching a brand new tablet map experience.
Now we’re seeing new features for directions and navigation. In traffic view you can get real-time incident alerts.
For a second, I thought the coffee search meant free coffee for the audience. Nope.
It seems that Starbucks is a launch partner, so you can see certain Starbucks deals when you pull up the business listening. Yelp and Foursquare competition, anyone?
2.5 hours into this liveblog, they acknowledge you might need a cup of coffee. They show how you can search for coffee nearby and see what’s around.
Cleaner way to get through map results with horizontal swipes.
And we can see the integration of Zagat reviews into the business pages.
You’ll be able to check out restaurants and see Google reviews for them (on a five point scale.)
These features will be on Maps for Android and iOS.
Now we’re getting a new look at Google Maps for mobile. Looks much sleeker and modern.
Big dig on iOS there… yikes!
“People called it sleek, beautiful, and let’s not forget… accurate!” — Google on Google Maps for iOS. Hah.
Here comes some new Maps news for mobile.
Between 3D images of buildings, satelite aerial, terrain data, street view, and base maps, you end up with several layers to create a highly complex maps.
Still haven’t seen a Street View car in the sticks where I live. The cows are practicing their smiles.
Hello, cute turtles.
Getting an overview of Street View and how it’s grown. They’ve driven 5 million miles with the cars to record imagery, as well as up trains through the Swiss Alps, down the Amazon on a boat, and underwater in the Great Barrier Reef.
We’re taking a look at Google Maps circa 2005. Fun to look back and see how the internet has changed.
Today we’re talking about the future of Google Maps, he says.
Next up is Brian McClendon to talk about Google Maps.
It’s a new search experience to “change how you and I experience this beautiful journey called life.”
This all takes personalized meaningful search to a new level. I’m impressed.
Kevin and I are wondering if this could hurt travel apps like Tripit that organize all your travel details in one place. Certainly what Google Now is looking to do (organize your flight and hotel info for whenever you need it.)
They’re launching reminders in Google Now today, so you can tell the app to remind you to do certain things. (Remember to call Katie next Wednesday.)
I see the new voice search features in the Dev channel on my Pixel now. Looks like Google is pushing it out to a wider audience today.
Yep, so you can ask it “when does my flight leave,” and Google can read it to you.
Wright is now showing how you can ask Google Now all sorts of questions and get the right answers (when is my reservation, what are the height requirements for the roller coaster, etc.)
Cool. Wright demonstrates how you can ask to go to “it” from “here,” and Google can recognize where “it” and “here” are through voice recognition.
The new hotwording / conversation search uses similar phrasing as Google Glass: “OK Google” to wake it. This is like the addition of Siri to Google Now.
Hands-free search using the knowledge graph up next. Wright shows how you can ask for “show me things to do in Santa Cruz,” and get suggestions for family-friendly activities. You can even ask for photos of the boardwalk and see what it looks like.
Next up: Johanna Wright with search.
Goal of the new experiences: Answer, converse, anticipate. It’s all about predicting what you want before you know you want it.
Google Now is becoming an intelligent platform on its own: Google can add services through cards across iOS, Android and Chrome.
They’re also launching public transit commute time cards, and well as new cards for music and television.
“Today we’re happy to announce that you’ll be able to set reminders for yourself in Google Now, and they will show up at the right place at the right time whenever you need them.”
“We think the essential experience is to anticipate you and suggest the right thing at the right time before you ask for it. Here first i’m talking about Google Now.”
Have I mentioned the big theme of services between Chrome and Android in the past few minutes? Conversational search comes to Chrome.
Conversational search is the future, he says.
More natural language processing features? Talking about “Converse”.
“You can ask Google like you would ask a friend,” he says.
So you can search “my trip to London,” or “when is my upcoming flight,” and this info can come from Calendar, Mail, etc. Sort of like the features from Google Now, but built into search.
I agree with Singhal: Search is changing.
So now when you search for “India population,” Google’s knowledge graph data will start showing up in results. For instance, a chart showing graph of Indian population growth over time.
Star Trek jokes now. I don’t get them but Om and Kevin are chuckling.
Talking about “answers” and knowledge graphs…
Hmmm…. sounds like some Google Now news coming up….
Google’s Amit Singhal is on stage now talking about new experiences with search.
We’re looking at a screen with a search bar, filled with the text: “The end of search as we know it.”
“We’ve shown you what can happen when Google is your darkroom,” he says.
Whaaa. They can look at your different photos of group shots and stitch together a new photo where everyone is smiling.
Not sure the world needs more animated GIFs, but Google will put similar photos together to create them for you.
We’re still getting updates on who you can make your photos look more awesome. Features will be turned on this afternoon.
“It’s like Neutrogena for photos!” Kevin says. Skin softening feature can remove your wrinkles from photos.
And in the pic, he’s wearing the same green shirt I have!
Props to Vic. He has volunteered a photo of his own face to display like 20 feet high for editing demo purposes.
Well, the Chromebooks (including the Pixel) just a got a picture imaging boost with the new Auto Enhance features.
Google’s editing software can do: tonal distribution, skin softening, noise reduction, structure, balancing, etc.
FWIW, this is the second time in two weeks I’ve seen a demo that includes an Ansel Adams quote.
Again: desktop version looks just like the tablet version. #BigThemeAlert
So the desktop version will give you the highlights from your photos, with the option to hit “more” and see all the others.
Machine learning at work on photos.
Wow, it can recognize if people are smiling in your photos and if you’re at famous landmarks.
Highlights is going to save a ton of time to create beautiful albums. Thank goodness…. I can’t manage my email, let alone my photos.
So you can upload 600+ photos from your vacation, and Google’s algorithms will pick out the best ones for you (removing blurry photos, duplicates, poor exposure). Very interesting.
MOAR MEGAPIXELS!!!!
Clever display on the main screen shows the possible resolution for photos on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Google (the largest.)
Here comes the power of the cloud with photos.
Now moving on to photography. It takes a lot of time to upload, edit and share photos.
This is like a merger of Google Talk (with video) and Google+.
And yep, you can drop all your friends into a group video Google Hangout.
“Conversations that last, with the people you love,” is the tagline.
Oh boy, another app with a stream for photos and chatting with friends.
Google says half of G+ post sharing is with limited audiences. I suspect that had much to do with the reason behind a standalone Hangouts app.
Looks like it’s a messaging app that allows you to chat with friends, either via text or video or photos.
They’re launching a new app called Hangouts.
He’s talking about all the different things people have to consider when posting to social media, like content (text versus photos versus video), and operating system (apple, android).
Sounds like more cross-platform bits coming with Hangouts / Images.
“Gadgets get in the way, ” says Vic. Hmmm….
Definitely will be more engagement in Google+ with the analysis Google is using for photos and hashtags. Smart.
So if you upload a photo to Google+ of the Eiffel Tower, for instance, even if you don’t add a caption that says so, Google will reocognize the image and add an appropriate tag (although you can remove those tags if you want.)
What’s interesting is that Google isn’t just pushing a desktop experience to tablets or a tablet experience to the desktop. It’s finding which offers the best experience and bringing it to all devices.
You can choose your Google+ layout however you want. (One column, two columns, etc.)
Very card-like. Similar to Google Now.
New Google+ stream view looks like the tablet view was brought to desktop via Chrome.
You’ll start seeing a mobile-friendly Google+ stream on all your devices, and a new design that emphasizes “depth.”
Here comes the common experience again: Google+ stream updates across all platforms and devices.
Introducing three improvements in different areas: a new stream, hangouts, and photos.
Hundreds of million have joined Google+ in two years, he says.
Not sure why the focus on Google+. It’s a ghost town, don’t you know? ;)
Next up: Vic Gundotra to talk about Google+.
I’m not suggesting Chrome > than Windows or Mac in education, but Chromebooks are a good tool in that environment for far less $.
“You could be sitting in a field with a Chromebook experiencing world-class learning,” a teacher in the video tells us.
Up next: videos of cute kids in elementary school around the world using laptops.
The service merging of Chrome / Android here is worth repeating. I think it’s the big story so far.
Whoa: they’re using Google Play for Education where I went to school in Hillsborough Township, NJ. Talk about a small world!
Also, Ki Mae would have the definite opinion on this, but seems important: teachers can purchase an app for an entire class of kids — you don’t have to individually purchase by child.
Smart move: an education “app store” so to speak.
Cool. New education section in Google Play store will divide up apps by appropriate age group, so you can look for apps specifically appropriate for kindergarten versus first grade, etc.
He’s announcing a new initiative to get Android tablets into the hands of kids and give them educational apps and tools.
Yerga is back, talking about how they can make it affordable to bring more technology into classrooms.
I wonder if the big education push is partially why Chrome usage is growing quickly these days.
7 of the 8 Ivy League schools use Google apps. And public schools too, he says. (UNC didn’t, and all the students were grumpy about that.)
Google apps are really popular in schools, Sundar tells us. Google apps are in use around the world.
They won’t be ready until 2 P.M. So don’t stampede the Pixels, they warn the audience.
Aaand they’re giving away Pixels!
And now Eliza can experience it…. because…
Kevin has the Racer info tab open on his computer. I’m still fascinated by his touchscreen.
Now we’re watching a Google movie on the history of the web.
I saw the link to racer: http://chrome.com/racer You can get more info there.
Wow. This is pretty absurd. You can put all your devices together, and the game is split across multiple screens.
All the devices combine to create one big single screen via Chrome!
This one is called Racer, and it’s all in Chrome. You press down to accelerate your car, and the game works across iOS and Android devices.
Man this is like the third or fourth game demo we’ve seen so far today.
Indeed: all about services for this first hour. No hardware (save that full-priced Galaxy S 4, that is)
We’ve passed the one hour mark here and still going strong. Now watching a video about the new HTML tags they’re introducing.
Google directs interested folks to the sesions later today on mobile payments to learn more.
Abandonment rate of shopping on mobile phones is 98 percent, so they’re using autocomplete features on Chrome so that once you enter payment information, it will sync across your devices. Will help you check out and pay on mobile.
This Chrome data compression started appearing in March as an experimental option: https://gigaom.com/2013/03/07/this-hidden-command-shows-how-much-data-youre-saving-in-chrome-beta-for-android/
Now we’re hearing about data compression on Chrome for mobile. Can help you reduce your data usage, they tell us.
The WebP and VP9 (WebM) image and video improvements are also important. Most of us don’t have unlimited mobile broadband access…
By the end of 2012, over half of internet traffic on mobile was video. “We need to make video smaller.”
We have our requisite cat GIF now. Nice.
These improvements are key on mobiles: even though the chips are getting better, speeding things up on the software side is important too.
Now we’re hearing about Javascript speed improvements.
I guess that onscreen keyboard and screen rotation support we found in Chrome a few weeks back is meant for Chrome running on Android tablets then.
So it sounds like Chrome for Web will offer the same experiences on a Chromebook as well as an Android tablet. There’s your “merger” so to speak.
“As he gestures around on his touchscreen, the music changes.” We are zooming through Middle Earth now.
WebGL support is a big part of this.
Now we’re watching someone play at Hobbit game with touchscreen. Both the Hobbit game and touchscreen are very cool.
Talking about Chrome on Android being the same as on a Pixel. I still want a Chrome OS tablet.
OMG. It was so cool.
BTW: I just pushed that last update by touching my Pixel screen. I think Eliza wants one now.
WIth Chrome, you get your personalized web experience across all devices, he says. And we need to bring that to mobile.
The Pixel mention by Sundar got a few chuckles just now. #NonBelievers
Lots of people buying the $249 Chromebook but I’m sure price has much to do with that.
We’re getting an overview of the different laptops Google has launched recently.
Chrome is getting as big as Android, which explains why it’s a 2-platform approach. Desktop/laptop and phone/tablet.
Chrome is increasingly being used on mobile. We’re back with Sundar.
Last year at Google I/O they had 450 million monthly active users. This year we’re added 350 million new users, so they’re at 750 million monthly active users of Chrome.
Switching from Android to Chrome now.
We’ve got some cool, graphics-jumping-across-different-screen action happening.
Chrome time!
So much for that next purchase. I was thinking Google gets some subsidy action for a $399 phone. :(
It will go on sale for $649. Everyone now less excited.
Nexus user experience, T-Mobile and AT&T, LTE support, 16GB, bootloader unlocked.
“It’s Google’s take on Android, and it feels really awesome on the Galaxy S4.”
No TouchWiz, just Android 4.2 like on a Nexus.
Hugo is showing off a Galaxy S 4 but with stock Android. Yay!
Does All Access come with a free Nexus Q???? #Kidding
So no price advantage, likely due to licensing deals. I’ll try the free trial for sure though.
It’s launching in the U.S. starting today, and if you subscribe by June 30th, it’ll only be $7.99 a month.
It’s priced at $9.99 a month in the U.S., with a 30 day free trial.
Again with the commonality between Chrome and Android: Play Music All Access looks very similar on the web. Big theme here….
So far we’ve been looking at screenshots and demos of All Access on the phone, but now we’re seeing similar versions on the laptop and tablet.
And then the “Listen Now” tab will include tracks you’ve chosen, new releases from artists you like, as well as suggestions, for when you just want someone else to choose music for you.
So you can add tracks you like to “My Library,” which will include music you’ve personally uploaded, as well as songs you’ve added from All Access.
C’mon Google: How much will this cost? Can they have undercut others on the market?
“We’re Google, so there’s always search at the top.” You can serach for certain songs or tracks to find exactly what you want if radio feature isn’t doing it for you.
Google Play Music All Access user interface looks modern and fresh. Swipe to peek at next track, etc…
Very cool, you can swipe away songs you don’t like, and re-order tracks in the list. “Radio without rules,” they tell us.
“Here’s where the magic starts. Anything I’m listening to in All Acess I can turn into a radio station with a never-ending mix of related tracks.”
Looking forward to trying All Access because I don’t think anyone has yet nailed music discovery. Will Google?
So you can look at music by your interests, as well as music by genres. Playlists curated by music editors.
You can enter “Explore” and browse millions of tracks based on your personal music interests.
Sounds like Google’s twist on Pandora.
“Today I’m happy to announce Google Play Music All Access.”
“Today, users in 13 countries globally are enjoying their music on Play music. But what if we gave you access to millions of tracks in our store in addition to your library?”
“So you guys want to hear about music?” The crowd does.
Definitely more commonality between Chrome and Android with the Play Store experience. This is the “merger” between the two, I’d say: the end user experience through common services.
So you’ll be able to look for content by type (music, books, etc), but also by the devices you want to use it on.
The Play store will highlight apps that are designed for tablets, as opposed to phones.
If it wasn’t clear before: Google+ is a big part of Google’s future. Play store recommendations based on friends +1’ing apps and media.
Personalization features in the Play store will roll out over the coming weeks, he says.
So it will try to recommend certain movies and music for you based on your tastes. They’re shwoing us two different people’s screens to show the differences.
New play store has a different organization, changing how content appears on the screen, but it also tries to give you more discovery options.
Google Play looks much better on the Nexus 10 now. Cleaner, but is it easier to find things?
We’re starting with updates to the Google Play store, Yerga says.
“I’m feeling pretty API-d out,” Barra says. He’s back. He introduces Chris Yerga, engineering director for Android.
Devs can chose what percentage of the market to send the app out to. (10 percent, 20 percent, up to 100.)
New beta testing feature is big: instead of launching publicly and basing fixes on production use (and getting bad reviews), this should bring better apps to Android the first time.
Three tabs at the top of the developer console: production versions, beta testing, and alpha testing. Testers can leave app reviews that don’t count toward public reviews.
It’s clear that Google has listened to developer feedback based on these new features. They’re all about helping devs get their apps in distribution around the world and then monetized.
Today we are launching Beta Testing and Staged Rollouts, she says. Huge applause here.
And they’ve added a new tab to the developer console showing you where your revenue is coming from. Even breaks it down by country (revenue from Japanese users versus American users, for instance.)
All your metrics are in Google Analytics, both active users and where those users are coming from.
Nice tool for devs to see actual downloads and usage.
So you can see different websites that send you traffic, and it will visualize for you which of those people install and then use your app.
We’re announcing Referral Tracking, she says. Will let you know where your installs are coming from.
Looks pretty cool. If you want your app to be in Russian, but you don’t speak Russian, you can pick your price point per word, and send your app off for translation.
Ellie is covering some of the new tablet optimization tips in the Google Play Console from a few weeks ago: https://gigaom.com/2013/04/25/pushing-for-better-tablet-apps-google-adds-new-developer-optimization-tool/
You can get professional translations for your apps directly in the developer console, she says.
First lady on stage! Ellie Powers, product manager for Google Play, is on stage.
Half of building an app is getting new users and distributing your app, they tell us.
This ought to help devs in a big way when it comes to ensuring apps work on all screens, including tablets. That can help offset some tablet app pains people are still experiencing from time to time.
Looks like these updates will let you tweak the layout of your app on different Android devices for different languages and phones.
This actually is pretty slick: you can see your Android app rendered on various screen sizes and devices.
I’m sure the devs are happy right now, but an IDE doesn’t get my juices flowing. Lots of oohs and ahs though, so it must be good stuff!
Now we’re getting an explanation of some cool stuff happening in the coding on the screen. Devs seem pumped.
Next up is something called Android Studio.
Actually they did ask us to turn off any bluetooth devices. Not sure if people complied with that.
These new Google Play services are for Android 4.0 and up. Sorry Gingerbreaders.
All the core APIs we’re looking at today will be available via an update to Google Play services available today.
At least they didn’t ask you to turn your wireless devices off.
“The network environment here isn’t that friendly.” They are moving on.
The internet in this room is indeed terrible. They’re still trying to connect the game.
At least it was a graceful crash. ;)
Oh sad, they got an error. “Google Play services has stopped working.”
Looks a little like how you invite people to join a Google+ hangout. Add people to the game, and once they’re all there, you can start playing together.
Now we’re watching three Google employees on stage demonstrate some of the gaming options.
Wonder if this social gaming bit will require a G+ account. Probably is my guess…. Google continues to find cracks in the walled garden of iOS.
Now we’re hearing how they’ll implement multiplayer game options. Help you find new people to challenge and manage group gaming.
Again, more cross-platform support. Love it because not everyone uses one mobile platform.
Cloud save, achievements, and leaderboards will also launch for iOS and web so you can have cross-platform game experiences.
You can connect with other gamers on Google+ circles, encourages “friendly competition.”
Super: I’m tired of starting Angry Birds over and over on different devices. The pigs are still laughing at me….
So if you finish level one of a certain game on a phone, you can pick up where you left off on your tablet.
Next up is Google Play Game Services for game developers.
Time for some gaming news!
Kevin is super excited about this.
You can sign up for the new GCM API today.
THANK YOU! No more multiple notifications on phones and tablets: they’re synchronized!!! :)
They’re launching another GCM API that will sync your notifications for you. Crowd goes wild.
You can now use GCM to send data from the app to servers, as well as servers to apps.
GCM is what we discussed in our last Chrome podcast: push messaging!
The news is that GCM (cloud messaging) is now part of Google Play services.
60 percent of top one hundred apps in Google Play today are using GCM. And they’re pushing 17 billion messages per day.
Nice hook between Chrome apps and Android with that feature.
So once you’ve signed into The Fancy website with your Google+ login, you’ll be automatically signed in on your Google tablet, for example. That’s cross-platform single sign-on in action.
New sign in that asks you to install a related app on your Android is pretty slick.
We’re looking at how you’d log into The Fancy. Shows FB, Twitter, and Google+ sign-in options. He picks Google, obviously. And his other devices will recognize his login.
Google+ Sign-in is getting an update, it seems. “We’re exapnding that capability by introducing cross-platform single sign-on.”
Love the Activity Recognition. Maybe I’ll see that MotoACTV smart watch updated after all!
The third API can recognize walking, cycling, and driving.
Third new location API is Activity Reocognition that let’s you track physical activities. Apparently much-requested.
I’m putting a geofence around my kids.
The new Fused bit uses much less battery; great for phones and tablets!
Second is Geofencing that lets you define virtual fences around areas that trigger when people enter and exit.
First is called “Fused Location Provider.”
Looks fantastic in 3D mode in the Expedia app!
Google Maps API is a huge part of this, “but today we’re takign this a step further with three new locations APIs.”
We’re looking at a map on Expedia with Google Maps built in. Look how far we’ve come! he says.
Google Play services come from the Play store, and are independent of latest operating services.
Good to see that Google uses the same APIs that developers can use. Keeps the playing field level for all.
Google Play services up first.
Starting with tools for developers.
We’ve been on this incredible journey for five years now, he says. “We’re here to show that we’re listening. And we really want you to thrive.”
In the past four months they’ve paid out more revenue to developers than in the past year alone.
Ah, but how much have developers made? Here comes the answer.
Google Play has crossed 48 billion app installs, Barra says. And 2.5 billion installs in the last month alone.
Hugo Barra, VP product management for Android, comes on stage.
Still less than 10 percent of Android adoption in countries with 4.5 billion people. Good growth opportunity.
Much of South America, Africa, Asia, Russia, etc. still have low penetration for Android (in many places under ten percent.) They’re looking to expand, obviously.
“We’re incredibly humbled by where we’ve reached, but we have to remember there are seven billion people on this planet,” he says. They’re highlighting Android penetration around the world.
Amazing Android activation growth although at my last check, the growth rate was slowing. Surprising to me since Android should do well in emerging markets.
900 million active Android devices, Google says.
Now we’re watching a super futuristic video of…. the Golden Gate bridge? And Google user stats that are hard to read.
The goal is to keep you guys updated on what we’re doing with our products so you can keep building what you build, he tells the developers.
So I guess no Android apps on that touchscreen of the Pixel. Bummer, but I can understand Google’s focus on the two different platforms.
We’re building products like Search, Mail, Maps, YouTube, and many more, he says. He’s excited about all the third-party apps developers can build.
The goal was to design a simpler, safer, and faster browser, he says of Chrome.
Un, Sundar, about that photo from St. Peter’s…..
Sundar is putting the kibosh on Chrome and Android merging with his commentary now. Clear message.
We have two large, open platforms, he says, designed for developers like the people in the audience: Android and Chrome.
“The power of these screens are incredible,” he says. “We at Google are incredibly excited. Which is why we see this as one of the most important moments in computing.”
It’s definitely a multi-screen world, as Sundar notes.
“Look at the one on the right. A sea of phones capturing that moment,” he says. People are using a variety of different types of devices.
The smartphone changed everything, he says! We’re seeing the dual photos of the Pope announcements, one pre-smartphone, one post-smartphone age.
“Most of you here have lived through the revolution in personal computing,” Pichai says. Talking about the history of computing.
I think we’re at one of the most pivotal moments in personal computing, he says.
Now we have Google’s Sundar Pichai on stage.
“We hope the things you see will inspire you, and we at Google will continue to earn your trust.” — Vic
It’s not about us, it’s about you, the developers, he says. Thanks everyone who’s here.
6,000 in attendance. Vic looks like he’s wearing the same shirt as me, just in Chrome blue.
Now we’ve got Google’s Vic Gundotra on stage welcoming us to I/O.
Lot of music track and headphone shots on screen.
If Google really is launching a music service today, they’ve done a good job of making this feel like a rock concert. (A nerdy rock concert, but still.)
Crowd just counted down the last 10 seconds. IO is a go!
“Everyone’s just taking pictures of each other,” Kevin observes.
So last chance guesses: More software features for apps on Chrome and Android is my guess. But as a gadget guy, I really want to see some hardware too. Still hoping to see a touch-based Chrome tablet that docks with a keyboard, but maybe that’s just me. ;)
This is like sensory overload here. We have loud music going, a large countdown timer on screen, and some cheering and chanting from Googlers on the other side of the room.
Hey, it’s Kevin and I finally got connected. Whew! 3 minutes to go and crowd is getting rowdy!
Hey guys! It’s Eliza. We’re here getting set up and dealing with some wonky wifi. But we should be starting around 9.









































































































































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