Google will add "buy buttons" to limited mobile search results, during the next weeks. Tech experts believe this is an attempt to challenge Amazon and eBay.
The result of clicking on the buy button will send mobile device users to a Google page where they customize their online order and shipping preferences. However, retailers will still sell the online products.
The Google buy button feature differs from Amazon's and eBay's programs in that the former will not get a percentage from the product's sale price. Instead, retailers will use the search engine company's existing ad system.
Smartphone users and tablet users can make purchases with the Google buy button, by one-time adding of payment details such as credit card information to their mobile devices. Google will then automatically load this data for future mobile purchases.
Unlike Amazon, Google will share its customers' email addresses with online merchants. Also, Google's purchasing pages will be branded for particular companies, and related items will only sell that retailer's products.
Various stores such as Macy's are already negotiating with Google about participating in the launch of the buy button feature, according to Christian Science Monitor. However, other retailers are hesitant to get on board.
The main reason they site is that it would give them less control in how their ad displays. It could also weaken their relationship with online shoppers, and result in price competition.
The Google buy button could challenge Amazon. Users could search for and buy products only advertised by Google.
Jeremy Levine, an e-commerce investor, stated that Amazon is "running away with" North America's online retail. Thus, Google has to create a practical alternative.
The buy button is also a new way to cater to smartphone shoppers. In fact, more Google searches are conducted on mobile devices than on PCs and laptops.
However, mobile device shopping involves small text fields. Google's convenient buy button feature would hopefully make mobile shopping easier for shoppers.
Google originally announced its buy button program last December, according to The Verge. Since then, it has decided to limit the Google feature to smartphones and a "small percentage" of search traffic.