As many Gmail users might have noticed, Google launched a program called Buzz last week. I wanted to suspending appraisal until I had the opportunity to test it out and get a good sense for it’s purpose. Much like anything new that is socially related, it must make it easier to decipher information from connections in order to be successful and valuable. Unfortunately, Buzz fails in this realm. Not only does it turn notifications of activity into spam, it has no Facebook integration – which is where all my friends reside. I understand that they are trying to compete with Facebook with this app, but Facebook currently has 400 million users compared to Gmail’s 173 million. Facebook has the critical mass – and the better tools to stay connected.

I completely understand Google are aggressively leaping into the info streaming game. Facebook is gobbling up their eyeballs for ads and search because Facebook uses Bing. Their strategy is to become the advertising source for all websites in the world. This works when people make personal blogs, but when blog creation slows because Facebook profiles are easier to maintain, those ad dollars disappear. Furthermore, Facebook’s ad system allows marketers to target demographically, geographically and by keywords; whereas Google only allows for geographic and keyword targeting.

Facebook is also about to launch “Open Graph” -  which will allow businesses to build websites using a highly integrated version of Facebook Connect. It kind of reminds me of Blogger, but is much more socially integrated. This will further reduce Google’s online ad market – but that complex discussion is for another post.

Personally, I’m a Google Fanboy who loves almost all of the products they produce. I have been a Gmail user from day one, I use Google Voice daily, I’ve tried Wave (meh for now), use Docs regularly and even run all company emails through their App system. This is the first time that I have seen Google jump on a “me too, but not as good” wagon that Microsoft regularly excels at. In it’s current state, Buzz will have a hard time gaining traction and I’ve already moved on until changes are made.