Google already hosts a significant base of developers on its Apps platform. And the company is also trying to grow the uptake of its online services, such as Voice, Reader and Blogger. Now, it’s marrying the two.
On Thursday, Google announced that business users and others will be able to access its Web services through their Apps accounts in a bid the company says will drive productivity.
“Coupled with the ability for administrators to provide different sets of applications to different groups of users, the possibilities for empowering workers in new ways are remarkable,” Google software engineer Derek Parham said of the new integration. Datamation takes a look.
Independent developers have helped Google steadily ramp up its Apps Marketplace, an online storefront for programs that works with the company’s Google Apps suite. But Thursday Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) announced a significant expansion of available applications by bringing its own Web services into the Apps fold.
Specifically, Google said such services as Google Voice, Reader, Blogger and AdWords can now be accessed directly from Google Apps accounts via the standard single-sign on used to access Google Apps.