Google Renames Enterprise Unit to Target Growing Market

Google Inc. (GOOG), owner of the world’s largest Internet-search engine, is changing the name of its business unit, making a broader pitch to corporate users.

The enterprise unit will now be called Google for Work, better reflecting how consumers are pushing their employers to adopt new technologies in areas such as mobile and cloud-based platforms, said Amit Singh, president of the group. The unit often adapts services that were first developed for consumers, such as Gmail, maps and Android software, for corporate uses.

Like rivals Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc., Mountain View, California-based Google is seeking to push further into the business market as it looks for untapped areas of revenue growth. Corporate spending on technology hardware, software and services is projected to reach $1.6 trillion worldwide this year, up 7.7 percent from a year ago, according to IHS Inc.

“We are actually entering a very important phase of growth,” Singh said. “This is one of the big growth opportunities for Google.”

As part of the change, corporate versions of products like Gmail or maps will add the phrase “for work” as part of the transition away from the name “enterprise.” Products designed for education also will get a name change.

The business unit, which has thousands of employees, also will help Google appeal to smaller companies that don’t easily identify with the word “enterprise,” Singh said.

dailycomm.ru