DropBox Facing Competition From Google Drive

Giant Google enters cloud storage against popular Dropbox.

 
Dropbox has been the big name when it comes to cloud storage of information which can be shared among a variety of devices. It is the name that most people think of when asked about file sharing in the cloud. They have seen a lot of growth and because of that growth, it creates interest in the market space from other players, some of whom are very big. In the 1990's, any small company who developed a product which ran under Windows had to pay attention to what Microsoft was doing. If their product became too popular, Microsoft would often create a competing product which had devastating affects on the company. Dropbox has held their own very nicely against the likes of Amazon (Cloud Drive), Windows (SkyDrive) and others in the market. Dropbox is the leaders in this market segment and has shown their capabilities as a great file sharing product.

Enter Google Drive
Google has been rumored to be working on a competing product and today it is big news. It is not exactly ready for prime time as going to the Google Drive page shows "Your Google Drive is not ready yet". This looks much the same as when they started off with Google+ by attempting to generate excitement by limiting the number of people who could connect initially. Not exactly the best way to launch a product. This sounds much like a David and Goliath story where Google is seen as the Goliath as they are huge and anything they release has an impact on the market. Just how well Dropbox can defend themselves as David remains to be seen. Google Drive could be a big product.

That does not mean they will be successful, just they will make a splash. Google+ is a perfect example as many thought they would have radical growth and have a major impact on Facebook. It would appear the same may happen here. Sure, Google has a lot going for their product with all the other integrated products they have such as Google Docs. That may be the one weak point for Dropbox as Google enters the market. But that could be a weak point for Google as their bundled services are difficult to unbundle.

Dropbox is known for their maximum compatibility across a large number of platforms and devices. Others in the market and now Google Drive do not offer that compatibility and is a big strength for Dropbox. Whether Google Drive will achieve the ability to operate across a broad spectrum of devices is unknown.


Dropbox Standard
Dropbox has become the standard for what cloud storage should be when using it as a file sharing environment. That is not going to change and in light of Apple's iCloud, they have done well in maintaining their presences. With Google Drive coming out, we expect Dropbox to maintain their leadership role in the marketplace.

For some, pricing is always an issue and the various pricing models have a variety of options across the various products. The entry point is what often makes the most difference. Google Drive gives you 5 GB free while Dropbox gives you 2 GB of free storage. The big question is what product are most people more likely to start with. Given the Dropbox method of getting more disk space when you get your friends to join Dropbox, gives them an edge over their competitors, including Google. It is the market mass which will help them continue with this latest competitor entering the market place.

Google Drive could become a huge product, but it is too early to know just how much of an impact they might make. For now, Dropbox remains the market leader and probably will for the foreseeable future.