Google is Essentially Building an Anti-Amazon Alliance, and Target is the Latest To Join (recode.net)

Google and the country's biggest brick-and-mortar retailers have one main problem in common: Amazon. Now both sides are acting like they are serious about working together to do something about it. From a report: On Thursday, Target and Google announced that they are expanding what was a years-old delivery partnership from a small experiment in a handful of cities to the entire continental U.S. The expansion will allow Target to become a retail partner in Google's voice-shopping initiative, which lets owners of the Google Home "smart" speaker order items through voice commands like owners of the Echo can do from Amazon. The announcement comes seven weeks after Walmart inked a similar deal with Google to offer hundreds of thousands of products through the service. Other big-box retailers like Home Depot are also on board. Voice commerce was the core of these recent announcements, and it may someday become popular for types of shopping like reordering household staples. But that's not what is most interesting here to me. Instead, it's the promise that Target is also beginning to work with Google "to create innovative digital experiences using ... other cutting-edge technologies to elevate Target's strength in style areas such as home, apparel and beauty."

Comments

Sorry, Google

[JohnFen]

A year or so ago, I would have welcomed this -- but since then, you've done pretty much everything in your power to burn your bridge with me. And you've succeeded.

Re:Sorry, Google

[DNS-and-BIND]

James Damore did not say what most people think he said. He did not say women are unsuited for tech jobs. He did not say women only have tech jobs due to affirmative action. That is all bullshit piled on by those mau-mauing him, in an effort to expel someone whose questioning made them uncomfortable.

Why it made them uncomfortable is the fascinating part of all this.

It makes them uncomfortable because it shatters the brittle shell of their enforced narrative, which can only be kept by keeping everyone from saying anything against it. It is very much a "the king is naked" situation. If James Damore is allowed to say men and women are different, the entire project of feminism shatters.

And yet everyone who doesn't live in academia or in a social justice echo chamber knows that men and women are different. If you think statistically different from men means inferior, then YOU are the misogynist.

Doomed

[Tailhook]

So I have to have a google bug device and struggle with a "voice" interface buy stuff... this is DOA. Just put in my regular not-mobile web browser with a fast, full size, not-flat, non-suck UI. Make EVERYTHING in Target/Home Depot/Walmart have accurate stock levels and be same-day delivery from this site. That's how you compete with bleeping Amazon.

Re:Here's a odd idea:

[JohnFen]

Their quest for World Domination(tm) may come back to bit them.

But Google's quest for world domination won't?

I have a hard time seeing how people who would like to avoid Amazon for being monopolistic would be OK with Google's monopolistic tendencies.

Are they out of touch or am I?

[Cajun Hell]

which lets owners of the Google Home "smart" speaker order items through voice commands like owners of the Echo can do from Amazon.

Seriously? You seriously believe anyone wants to do that?

One of two things is happening:

1) Everyone-except-me spends most of their time shopping. If you're not asleep, then you're probably shopping. We all just sit around thinking about things we want to buy, and we're all frustrated that it takes so much work (ugh, the clicking! the endless clicking!!) to get them purchased. It's hell on earth, we have a problem, and we need it fixed. If only I had a convenient thing that would take voice commands for shopping! I would pay for that. I would order it. I'm ordering things right now. Anyone wanna sell me one of those? Oh well. I'll be ordering more stuff again in 15 minutes, so maybe my fantasy shopping interface will be ready then.

2) The aforementioned isn't true, but the people who run Amazon and Google think it's true.

Re:Are they out of touch or am I?

[JohnFen]

It's actually really simple:

by erasing, to the greatest degree possible, every single hassle required to buy something, you greatly increase the amount of impulse purchases. You'd be amazed at how often a minor amount of effort keeps people from buying something that they only maybe-kinda-sorta might want to buy.

This is great for retailers, and terrible for customers.