Marketing Pilgrim

Google has given the good folks who use their Australian engine some social networking features that come with a gaggle of Google gadgets. Looks like the only way to get the social networking aspects of the gadgets is to be putting your shrimp on the barbie. Smart Company tells us

The new gadgets include the “Updates” feed, which is similar to those seen on the Facebook home page. Other gadgets include news.com.au, Biggest Brain, YouTube, Photos, Chess, Flood-It!, NY Times Crossword, To Do, Go Comics, Trivia, Timeline, and Tile Game.

Users outside of Australia can use the gadgets, but only Australians can use their social features. Regan also said in his post that the social features are completely optional.

The gadgets are for those who use the Google Australian iGoogle page. The post on Google’s official Australian blog has the screenshot below and explains

Your friends are able to see what you share or do in social gadgets through the gadgets themselves, or through a new feed of information called Updates, a way to see what your friends are doing on iGoogle without adding all the gadgets that they have. Updates can include everything from favourite YouTube videos, to recently shared photo albums, to movie plans for the upcoming weekend…the list goes on and on!

Holy gadgets Batman! Your friends can see your gadgets through your gadgets! Will Inspector Gadget be the mascot of this new service? Ok, that was over the top but it is a ridiculously slow news day outside of the FaceFeed deal so I guess we are all just going to have to live with it!