Google steals from Starbucks' playbook

How's this for a passing thought: Google is not in the web business, but the "store" business. In the same way that Starbucks is in the business of opening stores - and using those stores as a platform for CD and coffee machine sales etc - Google has realised that real money can be made in opening different services, aka "stores." The latest example being Gmail, of course.

Industry Standard guest blogger Jen Muehlbauer seems to support my theory with the title of this post "Next Up: GBay, GCommerce..."

Indeed, what's next?

Update: The Google Operating System theory is worth considering.