Google has announced the Chrome Web Store today at the Google I/O event in San Francisco. If you visit the Chrome Web Store page online you’ll actually find a spot where a video presentation will be uploaded after the Chrome I/O event is finished.
Google has stated that the Chrome Web Store will be open later this year and it will be a place where people can discover new and amazing web applications for their web browser. The Chrome Web Store will also be a place where developers will now have a marketplace upon which to gain exposure for their new applications, and potentially reach millions of users.
Does this only work in Google Chrome?
Because web apps listed in the Chrome Web Store are regular web applications, built with standard web tools, they can be used by anyone using a modern browser that supports these web technologies. Users accessing the Chrome Web Store through Google Chrome will have the ability to create convenient shortcuts for easily accessing their apps.
Are applications in the Chrome Web Store different from other web apps?
No. Web apps listed in the Chrome Web Store are regular web applications that are built with standard web tools and technologies. The same web applications will run in other modern browsers that support these technologies.
What’s the advantage of “installing” an app from Chrome Web Store?
When Google Chrome users “install” a web application from the store, a convenient shortcut is added for quickly accessing the app. Installed web apps can also request advanced HTML5 permissions. For more information, read the preliminary documentation about installable web applications in Chrome.
How will I add my web application to the store?
We will invite developers to start adding their web apps later this year before the Chrome Web Store opens. To find out how to prepare your web app for the store, read our preliminary documentation and join our developer discussion group.
The Chrome Web Store will be available for users and developers later this year. Subscribe to our developer discussion groupand the Chromium blog for updates.
The Chrome Web Store & The Future of Web Applications
Google’s CEO Eric Schmidt has said multiple times before that the future of the web is made up of 2 things specifically:
1) The future web will be mobile
2) The future web will consist of web apps
The Chrome Web Store is right in line with Google’s vision of a future web that runs almost exclusively on fast, powerful web apps with a high degree of utility – meaning, web apps that are useful and productive to the end user.
My guess is that a majority of the popular web apps that will be found in The Chrome Web Store will not only be designed for desk top web application, but also for mobile phone utilization as well.
I will make sure I update this article with The Chrome Web Store video once it’s released from the Google I/O event.
Stay tuned…