The implications of Google’s new Chrome Browser launch could shake the foundations of Microsoft and the commercial software development industry. While Microsoft has been busily dominating the vast desktop computing software market, Google has, without much fan-fare, been furiously augmenting it’s search dominance with myriad web-based software development projects. Their projects include email clients/servers, spreadsheets, calendars, word processors, hosting, mobile operating systems, and countless other applications which, when viewed collectively, provide insight into Google’s business strategy. It’s a strategy which makes Microsoft’s goal of owning the desktop computing software market pale in comparison. Google wants to own information. And they effectively utilize user behavior data collected, quite transparently, through the distribution of free or low-cost applications to accomplish it.

Chrome http://www.google.com/chrome, while still in beta status, is symbolic of this strategy. The concept of a browser which enables the easy unification of Google’s many applications including Apps, Gmail, search, etc., is quite appealing to a growing user-base seeking integrated tools and greater mobility. The inevitable success of the browser will result in a mind boggling amount of user data being passed. And then what? Breadth of product, product refinement, tighter integration. And then, when a Google operating system or shared computing platform launches, their grip on computing will be devastating to Microsoft.

While never one to discount Microsoft’s ability to beat tough competitors, it is clear that Google already poses substantial concern to Microsoft given the gymnastics that MS has gone through in order to improve it’s search business via the failed attempt at purchasing Yahoo!. With Google moving into office computing applications, does Microsoft bite a very large bullet and buy Google or do they drown in Google’s eventual wake? Google, with a $146B market cap* and $12.7B cash on hand* represents an infeasible purchase to swallow by the Redmond, WA-based giant Microsoft (MSFT market cap at 247B, cash 21B). The implications of this extend well beyond anything that Apple or any other software developer may conceive. The iPhone may come and go but a monopoly on information would have more impact on humanity than the latest flavor of phone. I can feel something big coming. The outcome will be interesting to observe.

Are my speculations on or off target? Let me have your comments below.

*Yahoo! Finance data.