Google is developing its own web Browser, called Chrome. I guess it was only a matter of time. Google owns the search industry, and has been developing boatloads of other applications and information services, some of which are hits and some of which sit largely unused. Now we come to the next step in Google's evolution, where it works to tie everything together into a true platform.

Will the Chrome browser be the thing that does it? How heavily will it integrate Google's also-ran services such as Google Finance and Froogle? I have no doubts that compelling and intelligently designed new features will appear in this browser at a ridiculous pace. After all, that has become a key element of Google's brand of innovation with services such as Google Maps and Google Docs.

Will that be enough to overcome the obvious privacy questions that will accompany Chrome? Whether real or imagined, there will be a veritable chorus of concerns voiced (many of them being seeded by Google's frightened competitors) about where your private information could end up. Ironically, that has also become a key element of Google's brand.

Chrome could be a turning point, or just another stone on top of the fortifications. Since nobody actually has their hands on it yet, we'll have to wait and see!

For more, see: Official Google Blog: A fresh take on the browser