iGoogle is Google's popular homepage product, where users can create custom homepages with widgets and unique backgrounds. Google released iGoogle gaming themes last month, but this new discovery might be a whole lot more interesting: there is an iGoogle gadget floating around with functionality similar to Digg, called What's Popular.
Steve Rubel, a senior VP of Edelman Digital, caught the similarities between the iGoogle Gadget and the social media voting service Digg. The Google gadget allows users to find what's popular on the web by 1) submitting links, 2) voting on links, and 3) letting an algorithm do the rest. To most of us, this does sound a lot like Digg.
This widget clearly has features that overlap with Digg, but it's not a website or service of its own. Yet the question must be asked: could Google build a social media service from this widget that could compete with Digg or StumbleUpon? Would they want to?
Comparing Features: What's Popular vs. Digg
To understand why this specific gadget is raising eyebrows, you need to understand its features and how it works. It's much simpler than Digg or Reddit, but works on the same premise.
Central to the gadget is the ability to submit articles. It's as simple as copying and pasting a link - the gadget does the rest, although titles and descriptions can be changed, just like on Digg. It's important to note that you can add items without crediting yourself - it can be done anonymously, and there seems to be no rewards for submitting links that become popular.
Once items are added, anyone with the gadget can vote items up or down (like Reddit). The gadget shows how many upvotes the item has received (called pops). Articles with enough upvotes (and ones viewed favorably by the algorithm) rise to the top. The gadget even divides content between stories, videos, and images - another Digg feature.
It's still unknown how much traffic this iGoogle gadget drives to websites or how much it could drive in the future.
What is Google's Goal with What's Popular?
However, it's still just an iGoogle gadget, not a full-fledged service. It will not drive traffic to a website like Digg, StumbleUpon, or even Yahoo Buzz can, decreasing its current value. It's not hard, however, to see the What's Popular gadget becoming an extension of a larger service with the same functionality (Google Pop, anyone?). Don't forget about the huge userbase already using iGoogle - that alone could drive masses of traffic to websites.
Google has shown interest in the social media discovery space in the past. In fact, at one point last year, Google was close to acquiring Digg. An iGoogle gadget could be an easy way to "test the waters" before jumping in themselves.