Until last year, Google and Microsoft were each winning individual combats in the search engine and software industry. However, an intense competition has fired up between the two rivals as Google officially announced its plan to release an operating system for PC named Chrome OS.
Google first struck Microsoft with its release of an operating system used for cellular phones, called Android. Google continued to challenge Microsoft in the web-browser market, releasing the Chrome web browser last September. Microsoft returned its blow in June, with the launch of Bing, a new search engine developed by MS.
"Chrome OS is an open source (software distributed to users for free) that provides a light, fast, and simple service targeted at netbooks and minicomputers," explained Google.
As a countermeasure, Microsoft is developing the Gazelle, an operating system based on a web browser. Microsoft is also planning to manufacture free online versions of Office 2010, which include Microsoft Office Word, Microsoft Office Excel, and Microsoft Office PowerPoint. Users can freely use online products through the Internet without having to install the program in their computers.
Until now, the control that the two companies hold in the search engine and OS market is unquestionable. However, tension is growing in each market as the two companies are stepping into each other's arenas and are showing rather strong performances.
Overall, Microsoft is currently holding a dominant position, but Google is chasing right behind and is expecting to get a boost from its new product Chrome OS.
