14 DAY TRIAL // Google is used to giving things away for free - and making a bundle from advertising - but that doesn't meant that it's solely interested in the consumer market. The company is increasingly focused on the enterprise market and the revenue it could generate.
Its Google Apps suite is making some inroad. Now, Google is saying that Chrome, its increasingly popular web browser, is ready for the business environment and there are several tools and resources that make Chrome a viable alternative for enterprises.
"Businesses don’t need to wait any longer to deploy Google Chrome. Today, we’re announcing that Chrome offers controls that enable IT administrators to easily configure and deploy the browser on Windows, Mac, and Linux according to their business requirements," Glenn Wilson, Product Manager and Daniel Clifford, Software Engineer at Google, write.
Specifically, Google says that the browser itself is easier to deploy in enterprise environments, for example with the MSI installer for Windows, but that it's also providing ample policy management and documentation to make the life of system admins easier.
"We’ve created an MSI installer that enables businesses who use standard deployment tools to install Chrome for all their managed users. We’ve also added support for managed group policy with a list of policies and a set of templates that allow administrators to easily customize browser settings to manage security and privacy," the two explained.
They provide a more technical overview on the Chromium blog, usually aimed more at developers than the general public. Specifically, Chrome now supports Group Policy objects on Windows. On Macs, it supports plist/MCX configuration. For Linux users, Google provides special JSON configuration files.
For businesses already using Google Apps, Chrome is now included in the phone and email support program, enabling admins to get help in deploying and managing the browser.
For everyone else, Google provides documentation aimed specifically at businesses. However, the company says that this is just the first step. While it believes Chrome is now ready for businesses, there are still plenty to be done to make it a viable contender in the market.