google me

If you're waiting for Google to announce its new Facebook-beating social networking entry, you're going to be waiting awhile. CEO Eric Schmidt says Google's new plan is to gradually roll out some social networking features starting this fall, rather than launching a full-fledged standalone service.

Google views Web games as a key part of its strategy to take on Facebook. Instead of confronting its rival head on, Google is assembling building blocks -- such as email, music and games -- now and hoping to connect them later.

A top former executive at Facebook says Google is preparing a new social networking offering to challenge Facebook. The new effort, reportedly known as Google Me, comes after the company's last social networking attempt, called Buzz, ran into opposition over privacy issues.