| Google online video store starts without a bang By Jefferson Graham, USA TODAY LOS ANGELES — Google's new online video store, announced with great fanfare two weeks ago, isn't getting the applause typical of most new releases from the Internet's most-used search engine. The digital video store — at video.google.com— sells reruns of TV shows from CBS, PBS, the National Basketball Association and independent producers. Media reviewers, bloggers and users complain that selections are skimpy and hard to find. Strict usage rules which prevent prime-time shows from being viewed offline, aren't prominently identified, and some shows promised initially aren't there. Among those missing in action: Rocky and Bullwinkle, My Three Sons and Mannix. "Embarrassing," says Brad Hill, who runs the Unofficial Google Weblog. Google says it is working to upgrade the site, which is in "beta," or trial mode. "We're making changes every day," says Peter Chane, senior product manager for Google Video. "The best is yet to come." Competitor Apple shows off its TV offerings at the graphics-rich iTunes online store. Google's look is spare. It lays out offerings in a row of thumbnail images that don't offer show details. At iTunes, ABC lists 35 episodes of Desperate Housewives for $1.99 each. Google has just one listing for CBS' top-rated CSI and NCIS shows. Under Google's arrangement with CBS for its prime-time shows, only one episode can appear for sale at a time. "This is the arrangement we wanted," says CBS spokesman Dana McClintock. "We're trying lots of different scenarios," in experimenting in new media, he says. Forrester Research analyst Josh Bernoff says CBS' approach is a sign that it "fears the market." "Companies need to get beyond these toe-tipping strategies," he says. How deep are Google's selections? In a spot check by USA TODAY on Thursday, there were 16 episodes of The Brady Bunch, four of The Ed Sullivan Show, five of MacGyver, Star Trek: Voyager and The Twilight Zone, seven of Have Gun Will Travel, 10 of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and 16 episodes of I Love Lucy. Apple CEO Steve Jobs kicked the nascent video download market into gear last October when he announced an alliance with ABC. NBC followed, with reruns of Law & Order, The Office and clips from The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Saturday Night Live. Google's prime-time TV offerings can only be viewed on Internet-connected computers — which means they can't be viewed on laptops during flights. Customers must buy a "day pass," to view the prime-time shows within a 24-hour period. There's more flexibility with older shows and content from independent producers, which set their own usage rules. Google wouldn't disclose sales numbers, but Chane says, "We're doing more sales every single day." Apple says it sold 8 million videos since October at iTunes, which offers permanent downloads. John Battelle, who runs the widely read Searchblog website, says many Google Video users are disappointed because they expect more from Google. Recent product launches — Google's satellite view mapping and Gmail e-mail, for instance — resulted in critical raves and copycat offerings. "People expected for Google to change the world of video overnight, and it didn't," Battelle says. "Google Video is perfectly serviceable, but just one percent of what it's going to be."
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