Official Google Australia Blog

Next Google Start-Up “Do” - July 31

Monday, July 23, 2012

This blog post was updated with additional panelists on 24 July 2012.Google Sudo eventhereShoes of PreyVivian StewartBill Bartee

Mike Cannon-Brookes, CEO and co-founder of Atlassian

Paul Gray, CMO and Community Director, Bubble Gum Interactive

Stuart McLean, Head of Google Enterprise, AU & NZ

Lisa Frazier, Chief Innovation Officer, Equities and Margin Lending at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, and Founder and former President & CEO of The Bay Citizen

hereWe will email you an invitation if your registration is successful. Due to limited space we won’t be able to accommodate everyone, but we are hoping to stream the event over Google+ Hangout again -- stay tuned!Posted by Alan Noble, Engineering Director, Google Australia and New Zealand

The Internet means a faster future for Australia

Monday, July 23, 2012

This blog post was first published by The Age.Google+ HangoutAustralian election coveragePosted by Nick Leeder, Managing Director, Google Australia & New Zealand

Become an Antarctic explorer with panoramic imagery

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Cross posted from the Official Google Blogan advertisementStreet View imagery of the AntarcticWorld Wonders sitePolar Geospatial Center at the University of Minnesota New Zealand Antarctic Heritage TrustSouth Pole TelescopeShackleton's hutScott’s hutCape Royds Adélie Penguin RookeryCeremonial South Pole The ceremonial South Pole (View Larger Map) The interior of Shackleton’s Hut demonstrates the host of supplies used in early 20th Century Antarctic Expeditions—everything from medicine and food to candles and cargo sleds can be found neatly stored inside. (View Larger Map) The landscape outside of Robert Falcon Scott’s supply hut conveys just how desolate the area is. For these early explorers, the supply huts were an oasis of warmth and comfort in a cold and inhospitable landscape. (View Larger Map)Business Photos programStreet View trikesPosted by Alex Starns, Technical Program Manager, Street View

Change is the only constant in the media industry... it’s just getting faster

Friday, July 13, 2012

Yesterday Google Australia hosted around 150 members of young media professionals networking community NGEN for a panel discussion called “Industry in 2017” with an illustrious group of Australian media industry executives and CEOs.

Sharing their thoughts on how the industry will evolve over the next 5 years were heavyweights like Sophie Madden, Marketing Services Head, Kraft Foods; Mark Buckman, Chief Marketing Officer, Telstra; Kerry Field, General Manager, Mindshare; Mat Baxter, Chief Executive Officer, UM; Matt James, Managing Director, mi9; James Warburton, Chief Executive, Ten Network as well as Nick Leeder, Managing Director, Google Australia & New Zealand. Henry Tajer, President of the MFA and Executive Chairman of MediaBrands Australia, hosted the session.

The panel agreed that big data, social media, video and liquid media planning are abuzz for good reason. For all panelists the future of the media industry will be centred around data and measurement. Advertisers demand real return on investment (ROI) and agencies who can service this more than ever before. Hence media plans need to be “liquid” to react to changing audiences, opportunities and media. The panelists were split on the need to return to a full service agency model and on the question of Price vs Value.

James Warburton said that people will consume more content than ever before with the major difference being that it will just be across many more screen sizes--whether it is TV, catchup TV, smartphones, tablets or desktop doesn’t really matter. This was reiterated by Sophie Madden from Kraft Foods, who when asked about the future of TV, said “I have great optimism for the future of video.”

Telstra’s Mark Buckman made the point that digital cannot be a separate team, “We’ve all got to be digital people”. On social media, he remarked that it isn’t just an advertising channel but about “having deeper and longer conversations with our customers.”

But nothing grabbed the audience’s attention more than the panel’s thoughts on their own careers and what made them successful. Curiosity was a trait echoed by many of the panelists as critical to success but they also urged the crowd to be adaptable and to seize every opportunity to grow and to get out of their ‘comfort zone.’

While “Chief MO” - that’s what his team at Telstra calls him - Buckman and Ten’s Warburton said old-fashioned hard work and true passion for the industry are key for a career, Google’s Nick Leeder reminded the audience that only one thing can be guaranteed: “This industry will keep changing constantly and it’s only becoming faster. So if you want to stay in this industry, make sure you’re always open to the next big thing.”

Posted by Noelle Kim, Senior Industry Analyst CPG and NGEN member, Google Australia

Ride on! Cycling comes to Google Maps in Australia

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Dark green indicates a dedicated cycle path

Light green indicates a dedicated cycle lane along a road

Dashed green indicates roads that are designated as preferred for cycling, but without dedicated lanes

report a problemgoing for a Sunday afternoon ride with the family, or training to be the next Cadel Evans, we hope that bicycle directions in Google Maps can help make it easier to safely plan your next outing. Happy cycling!
Posted by Nabil Naghdy, Product Manager, Google Australia

Fairfax Media Goes Google

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

In an increasingly web-enabled world, the speed of sharing information continues to increase at a stunning acceleration. This has changed the way businesses in every vertical operate, but no field has been more impacted than the media sector – businesses that deal in information itself.
Today Fairfax Media, a leading multi-platform media group in Australasia, announces that it will provide its employees with Google Apps for Business. This makes Fairfax Media one of the largest Google Apps customers in the Asia-Pacific region, and they join 5 million other businesses, including fellow Australian companies such as Visy, Jetstar, Flight Centre and Ray White. After a successful Google Apps pilot program earlier this year, Fairfax will now work with Google Apps Premier Reseller, Cloud Sherpas, to ensure all staff have access to Google Apps by November 2012.

The Fairfax Media group comprises metropolitan, rural, regional and community publications and websites across Australia and New Zealand. High profile mastheads include The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian Financial Review and The Age, along with their corresponding national news websites.

A key part of Fairfax’s business is about quickly, efficiently and expertly providing information and content to its readers and customers — and the multi-tenant communication platform that Google Apps provides will help keep Fairfax at the forefront of its industry. Google Apps is a central part of the company’s “Fairfax of the Future” program transforming it into a “digital first” media organisation.
By taking up the heavy lifting of storing data and managing infrastructure, going Google will allow Fairfax to focus on being a media company and not worry about also being an IT provider. And the real-time collaboration in Docs and communication facilitated through Talk and Google+ Hangouts will allow reporters and editors working in various locations to overcome geographical barriers.

We're excited to see Google Apps as a key piece of Fairfax's transformation into the future model of a media company. These tools will allow Fairfax not just to allow employees to work in the future but to let the entire company better concentrate on the thing they do best — keeping the public informed.
Posted by Stuart McLean, Head of Google Enterprise Australia and New Zealand

Go offline with Google Maps for Android

Thursday, June 28, 2012

This is a cross-post from the LatLong blogHaving an Internet connection has always been a key requirement for using Google Maps for Android... until now.A few weeks ago we told you that offline Google Maps for Android was coming. Now, you can download the latest version of the app in Google Play, then select and save a region of a map from more than 150 countries (including Australia) for use offline. Whether travelling internationally, carrying a WiFi-only device, heading underground on the subway or restricting your mobile data usage, you can now save up to six large metro areas (e.g., Greater London, Paris, or New York City and surrounding area) and use Google Maps for Android to find your way.

Let’s say you find yourself traveling to London this summer. Before you head off on your trip, simply find the area that you’ll be visiting. Then select “Make available offline” from the menu and verify the area that you would like to save.

Below the map, you’ll see we estimate the file size for you, so you know how much space it will take on your device. Once you confirm your selection the map will immediately start downloading.

Save an area and go to My Places to see all your offline maps

If you have GPS enabled on the device, the blue dot will still work without a data connection so you know where you are, and if your device has a compass you can orient yourself without 3G or WiFi connectivity.

So whether you’re traveling internationally or underground, we hope offline maps will help you get around.

Today we’re also releasing a smoother and faster Compass Mode for Street View within Google Maps for Android. It’s the next best thing to being there, because your device becomes a window into a 360-degree, panoramic view of the outdoor or interior location through Business Photos. To experience the improved qualities of this feature you need a device with Google Maps for Android, Android 3.0 or higher and a gyroscope sensor plus version 1.8.1 of Street View on Google Maps.

See inside District wine bar in San Francisco

To learn more about Google Maps for Android features, start here.
Posted by Jiabei Lei, Software Engineer, Google Maps Mobile

Australia Blog

Next Google Start-Up “Do” - July 31

The Internet means a faster future for Australia

Become an Antarctic explorer with panoramic imagery

Change is the only constant in the media industry... it’s just getting faster

Ride on! Cycling comes to Google Maps in Australia

Fairfax Media Goes Google

Go offline with Google Maps for Android

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