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(Cross-posted on the Google Code Blog)

Every year at Google I/O, companies arrive excited to demo their coolest new products in the Developer Sandbox. In the past, these demos were only accessible to I/O attendees. This year, we wanted to help spread the love and knowledge from these innovative companies to developers who were unable to attend the conference and to attendees who want to relive the excitement or check out companies they missed.

In addition to the "Who’s at Google I/O" guest posts you may have seen from some of our developers on this blog, we’ve created video case studies from 19 of the companies that demoed their products in this year’s I/O Sandbox. These videos highlight innovations that span the entire range of Google product areas, from Android to Google Apps and Google Web Toolkit to Google TV.

Did you know:

• that CardinalCommerce is working with Google to enable alternative payments on the web and mobile devices?
• that you can see what your town looked like in the 1800’s using HistoryPin’s photo layer on Google Maps?
• that you can now play Angry Birds in Chrome? (OK, you probably knew that!)

Here are a few videos to get you started:

(Cross-posted on the Google Public Policy Blog)

Ten years ago, the vast majority of Internet users said they wouldn't use the Internet for any financial transactions. Today, more than 70 percent of Internet users access their credit card account via the Internet, and worldwide e-commerce spending is expected to exceed $1 trillion by 2013. And it makes sense why – the Internet provides not only vast product and service information, but also the opportunity to buy those goods right away.

For consumers and businesses to continue to benefit from online commerce, it’s important to keep it safe and secure. That’s why today we’ve posted a new Shopping Safety Tips page. Just as when you’re shopping offline, it’s vital to be a careful and informed buyer on the web.

We work hard to prevent fraud across our services and keep consumers safe online, including recent improvements to keep counterfeits out of ads. However, no individual or company can completely stop these activities on their own. Your help in reporting catch abuse and fraud are critical, and this page also provides links to where you can help us by reporting violations of our policies.



Posted by Derek Slater, Policy Manager

Posted by Pratip Banerji, Product Manager, Google Books

(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog and the Inside Google Books blog)

Starting this coming Sunday, July 17, the iriver Story HD e-reader will be available for sale in Target stores nationwide and on Target.com. The iriver Story HD is the first e-reader integrated with the open Google eBooks platform, through which you can buy and read Google eBooks over Wi-Fi.

The iriver Story HD, which retails for $139.99, is slim and lightweight with a high-resolution E Ink screen and a QWERTY keyboard for easy searching. It includes over-the-air access to hundreds of thousands of Google eBooks for sale and more than 3 million for free. With the Story HD you can now browse, buy and read Google eBooks with your e-reader through Wi-Fi, rather than downloading and transferring them from computer to e-reader with a cord as you can already do with more than 80 compatible devices.

We built the Google eBooks platform to be open to all publishers, retailers and manufacturers. Manufacturers like iriver can use Google Books APIs and services to connect their devices to the full Google eBooks catalog for out-of-the-box access to a complete ebookstore. You can also store your personal ebooks library in the cloud—picking up where you left off in any ebook you’re reading as you move from laptop to smartphone to e-reader to tablet.

In December, Google eBooks launched with the ability to read Google eBooks on any device with a modern browser, on Android and iOS devices using the Google Books mobile apps, through our Chrome Web Store app and on compatible ereaders. Since then, we’ve added new retailers—growing to include more than 250 independent bookstores—and made Google eBooks available in Android Market. We’ve also extended our affiliate network and updated our family of Google Books APIs.

The Story HD is a new milestone for us, as iriver becomes the first manufacturer to launch an e-reader integrated with Google eBooks. You can learn more about the Story HD on the iriver website.

Stay tuned for more Google eBooks-integrated devices to come. If you’re a manufacturer interested in integrating your next device with the Google eBooks e-commerce platform, please contact us at books-devices-request@google.com.

Update 7/13: We've corrected the word "e-ink" to the more precise "E Ink" as that is the technology brand used in the device's high resolution screen.

(Cross-posted on the Official Google Blog)

Following our first launch of Google Offers beta in Portland last month, we’re bringing great deals to the Big Apple and the Bay Area starting today. Subscribers who sign up at www.google.com/offers or via the new “Today’s Offer” tab in Google Shopper 2.0 for Android will start receiving emails with local offers in New York and the San Francisco Bay Area today.

We’re kicking off our bi-coastal rollout with offers from some local favorites:

• New Yorkers can mix salty and sweet with Belgian fries and mango chutney at Pommes Frites, savor chocolate molten cake with a glass of Malbec at Ayza Wine and Chocolate Bar or sample a delectable red velvet mini cupcake at Tonnie’s Minis in Harlem.


• In the San Francisco Bay Area, fresh donuts and apple fritters are served up 24/7 at Bob’s Donut & Pastry Shop on Polk Street. You can also get a taste of Provence at the Le Bateau Ivre Restaurant in Berkeley.

We caught up with the small business owners of New York Dog Spa & Hotel, Yoshi’s Jazz Club in Oakland and San Francisco plus Toy Boat Dessert Cafe in San Francisco to learn more about them and why they’re running Google Offers in the coming weeks.



Also starting later today, you can buy, view and redeem a Google Offer of the day with Google Shopper 2.0 for Android. Once you’ve bought or saved an offer, it will appear in the My Offers tab in both the Shopper app and when you visit www.google.com/offers. Shopper will also connect you to all kinds of deals that are near you in the Nearby Offers tab, so wherever you are, you can still get great offers from Google even if you haven’t signed up for the daily deals in Portland, New York and the San Francisco Bay Area.



This is all just the beginning. Whether it’s touring Napa wineries, grabbing a slice of deep dish pizza in San Francisco or Albany, CA or catching an improv show in New York, stay tuned for deals from the best these areas have to offer.

Next up, we’ll be heading to Austin, Boston, Denver, Seattle and Washington, D.C. Point your browser to www.google.com/offers to sign up ahead of time so you don’t miss the sweet deals when we launch in these cities.

Posted by Eric Rosenblum, Product Management Director, Google Offers

(Cross-posted on the Google Code Blog)

Over the past year, the web application ecosystem has been growing at an accelerating pace. Faster browsers and powerful web platforms like HTML5 have enabled developers to switch from native code to web based apps.

That’s why the Google Chrome and Commerce teams are holding several HTML5 Web App hackathons around the United States in early August. This is a great opportunity for developers to socialize, network and play with the latest web APIs. During the hackathons, we'll cover the end-to-end process of developing an HTML5 application, publicizing with Chrome Web Store and finally monetizing with In-App Payments.

In true hackathon style, participants will have the opportunity to create teams and work on a project together. At the end of the day, participants will present what they have created, and vote on the best apps or games. And of course we’ll have some awesome prizes for the winners.

The event is free of charge but space is limited. For more information and to register, please visit the location-specific links below:

August 1, 2011: New York
August 3, 2011: Chicago
August 8, 2011: Seattle
August 11, 2011: Mountain View

We’re looking forward to seeing the applications and games you build!

Posted by Mihai Ionescu, Developer Advocate

Just a week after the launch of Google Offers in New York City, we’re excited to share an upcoming deal of $40 for two sideline tickets regularly priced at $160 a pair to the July 26 soccer match between Juventus from Italy and Club América from Mexico at Citi Field, home of the New York Mets.

The Google Offer goes live tomorrow (Wednesday) morning at google.com/offers, in the Shopper 2.0 app for Android on the Today’s Offers tab and straight into New York City subscribers’ email inboxes -- for Uptown, Midtown and Downtown Manhattan.

The highly anticipated World Football Challenge match in Flushing, will be the second professional soccer game to be played at Citi Field.


This summer the world’s top international clubs and teams from Major League Soccer will compete in the Herbalife World Football Challenge, one of the largest soccer events ever staged in North America from July 13 through August 6. One of the most anticipated matches is between 27-time Series A champion Juventus FC and Mexico’s popular Club América.

The international game will feature Juventus’ 2006 FIFA World Cup winners including Alessandro Del Piero, Gianluigi Buffon, Andrea Pirlo, Andrea Barzagli, Luca Toni and present Italian National Team stars, Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini, Claudio Marchisio, Simone Pepe, Fabio Quagliarella and Alessandro Matri, as well as newcomers Reto Ziegler, Stefan Lichtsteiner, Michele Pazienza and many more.

Mexico’s Club America boasts internationals Christian Benitez, Aquivaldo Mosquera, Oscar Rojas, Matias Vuoso and Juan Carlos Medina, as well as Argentine striker Daniel Montenegro under the direction of Carlos Reinoso. A Mexican soccer institution, Club América is known for its successful combination of local players and international stars, which have taken the club to 14 league championship titles.

To subscribe to Google Offers in your area, please visit google.com/offers.

Posted by Spencer Spinnell, Director of Commerce Partnerships, Google Offers

At the Google I/O conference back in May, Vikas Gupta introduced a preview of the Google In-App Payments API during the Chrome keynote speech. Google In-App Payments purchases were demonstrated as a simple click right within a web app, so buyers could enjoy a developer’s content, without interruption.

Today, we’re making Google In-App Payments available for all web application developers to integrate with their web apps wherever they’re hosted, including the Chrome Web Store. Integration is simple with just a few lines of code. And pricing is set at just 5-percent.



In-App Payments is initially available for developers with a United States bank account and for buyers in more than 140 countries. We look forward to expanding to additional developer locations as quickly as possible.

(Cross-posted on the Google Books blog)

When JK Rowling’s new website Pottermore opens its doors this Fall, we’ll provide services to help fans make the most of their ebook purchasing experience.

Pottermore and Google are teaming up to integrate Pottermore with a number of Google products and APIs. So when the series of Harry Potter ebooks launches on Pottermore.com in early October, these bestsellers will be available in the U.S. via the open Google eBooks platform. When you buy a Harry Potter ebook from Pottermore, you will be able to choose to keep it in your Google Books library in-the-cloud, as well as on other e-reading platforms.

Google eBooks can be read on most devices with a modern browser, through the Google Books apps for iOS and Android smartphones and tablets, and on more than 80 ereaders.

Pottermore will be the exclusive place to buy Harry Potter ebooks and digital audiobooks. You’ll be able to buy ebooks from the Pottermore Shop, push them to your Google Books library and store them alongside your other Google eBooks. Your other Google eBooks may be purchased from any of more than 250 independent booksellers or from Google directly.

Also under this agreement, Google Checkout will be the preferred third party payment platform for all purchases made on Pottermore.com. When you visit the Pottermore Shop, you’ll be able to pay for your purchases using Google Checkout, in addition to using a debit or credit card.

The Pottermore team also plans to use YouTube for global video broadcasts in the future, as they did for JK Rowling’s announcement of Pottermore in June.

Stay tuned for more Pottermore and Google wizardry on the web this summer, leading up to when Pottermore opens.

Posted by Larissa Fontaine, New Business Development, Google Books

We're looking for Google Shopper users to provide feedback on the mobile app through a series of user studies. The first study is scheduled for Portland, Oregon the week of July 25th with more in other cities later in the year. If you are interested in taking part, fill out this short survey. If you are selected, one of our researchers will get in touch!

Posted by Laura Cuozzo, Google Shopper User Research Team

(Cross-posted on the Google Mobile Blog)

We’ve recently made a few new changes to Google Shopper for iPhone that makes it easy to find nearby deals when you’re on-the-go.

In the latest version of Google Shopper, in addition to the ‘Shop’ tab, you’ll now see two new tabs at the bottom of the app: Offers and My Offers. The Offers tab displays a list, or map view, of nearby offers which businesses have submitted through Google Places - from restaurant and movie theater deals to discounts on tennis lessons or a round of golf.

Let's say you come across an offer for free dessert at a nearby restaurant, but you won't have time to use it until the weekend. You can save the offer for future use, then later view and redeem it from the My Offers tab.

Additionally, if Google Offers are available in your city, you’ll be able to view and redeem your purchased offers on the My Offers tab. Google Offers are currently available in Portland, Oregon, the San Francisco Bay Area and New York, with other cities to follow.



Google Shopper 1.5 is currently available for iPhone users in the US and UK with iOS 4.0 and higher. If you’re a current Google Shopper user, you’ll automatically receive an update. Download Google Shopper 1.5 by visiting the App Store. To download Google Shopper for Android, visit Android Market.