• by Shankar Gupta , January 16, 2006

Google this month at the Consumer Electronics Show launched its pay-per-view video search--a move anticipated since April, when Google unveiled a video uploading service.

But now that the product is live on the Web, industry reaction has been muted, at best. "I think people were underwhelmed with the interface to the product," search expert John Battelle said. "There are a different set of expectations people bring to video, and there are expectations that people bring to Google," he added. "The promise that the Google brand brings is that it's going to be as good as Google search. When you don't have every single piece of video under the sun, and the product is still in beta, it disappointed a lot of people."

The service allows anyone owning video--from major networks to consumers who have created their own digital movies--to upload and set a price on their content. Individual publishers can choose their own DRM scheme, and users can purchase the video. Currently available are a host of home-produced movies, as well as a handful of professionally produced television shows, such as the "Brady Bunch" and "CSI."

Although Larry Page officially announced the service to great fanfare in Las Vegas, the feature was on the fritz immediately. "It didn't help that the service was down ... so people couldn't get a look at it," he said. "And when they did, I think people felt the interface and the approach to finding things wasn't as fluid as it could be."

Another part of the problem, said Jupiter Research Analyst Michael Gartenberg, is that users aren't accustomed to dealing with multiple DRM schemes, pricing models, and varying levels of content quality. "Instead of partnering with people who are already working in this space, Google went their own way," he said. "It remains to be seen how consumers will react to various pricing models, various rights models, and a rather eclectic mix of content."

Tech bloggers were less diplomatic than Battelle and Gartenberg. "Hey, is it my imagination, or is [this] the first really bad product Google has launched?" wrote Dave Pell of Davenetics.

"For some reason, people keep expecting Google to do something earth-shatteringly iPod-like in the entertainment biz, completely transforming the way people think about the company. Do they have it in them?" wrote search engine blogger Andrew Goodman, of Traffick. "Maybe, but the new Google Video Store certainly isn't it."

Battelle cautioned against judging the product too soon or taking the development as a sign that the search giant is losing a step. "I'm quite sure it'll be forgotten in a year, because I'm sure it'll be a very good product in a year," he said. "It has to be. It's very important to the company."