Google's Voice-Search App Is Slow in Arriving
Mon Nov 17, 12:01 pm ET
The hype machine was churning Friday when The New York Times and others noted that Google had offered its voice-recognition technology to Apple's iPhone before its own Android mobile platform.
While Google employees even posed for photos showing an iPhone running its voice-search app, the free application the world expected to appear on Apple's App Store still hadn't shown up as of Monday morning.
So instead of reviews about Google's app, there's speculation about what's taking Apple so long to get the app posted so iPhone users can begin downloading and using it.
"We're seeing so much talk about the application not being available partly because Google got so much press," said Michael Gartenberg, vice president of mobile strategy at Jupitermedia. "But Google is the one that said it was going to be available on Friday. Apple's process moves as fast as Apple's process moves."
Certification First
Apple wasn't immediately available for comment. Presumably, Apple didn't complete its review of Google's app in time to meet hyped expectations.
"What I think is interesting about all of this is that it doesn't make a difference if you are Google or a small developer," Gartenberg said. "You still have to go through the certification process before the application gets put out there to ensure it's going to do what it's supposed to do."
Some news headlines have suggested that Apple "forgot" to add the Google application to the App Store. Gartenberg, however, doesn't subscribe to that theory. "At the end of the day, Apple wants as many cool and interesting applications for the iPhone as possible because those applications help sell the iPhone," he said.
Is Google's Application iPhone-Ready?
With Google's app, an iPhone user asks a question, such as "Where's the closest hardware store?" or "How tall is the
Google Search then serves up the results -- in a matter of seconds if the user has a fast wireless network, the Times reports. The search results always include any local information.
Yahoo and Microsoft already have similar technology for voice search, and with good reason. Datamonitor expects voice-recognition technology sales will reach $2.6 billion by 2009. The challenge is refining the technology to be accurate.
With that in mind, could it be that Google's technology isn't quite ready for prime time? Not likely, according to analysts.
"Apple hasn't said it is banning the application or now allowing consumers to gain access to this application; rather, it's just that the application for whatever reason isn't available yet," Gartenberg said. "I don't see this as a problem."
Industry watchers expect the application to be available sometime this week.
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