Google Trends announced on Wednesday that it added YouTube search and video data from 2008 to present.

Google Trends allows users to search any term they’d like and browse search volume statistics, but now users can go to the left panel on Trends, choose “limit to”, and then select YouTube for a closer look at video trends.

Google gave example search query interests on the YouTube Trends blog, such as whether the “Harlem Shake” meme is over, and showcased how Trends provides a more detailed look at videos, terms, and topics overtime.

By the way, Harlem Shake is still going strong.

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Google now offers image search filters for GIFs.

Starting sometime today, according to Google on Google+, Web surfers can go to “Search tools” below the search box and select “Animated” under the “Any type” drop-down box to view GIF files in the result pane.

Reports surfaced Tuesday morning that indicated Google could soon launch filters to refine results for transparent and animated images, and now Google has confirmed those rumors. It also implemented, as previously speculated,  a “Transparent” option under the “Any color” drop-down box.

Also—Google served up a little GIF trivia on Google+:

Even if you’re a fan of animated gifs—say you were the first to email your friends the slow loris very slowly eating a rice ball (goo.gl/KDDX1)—you may not know that the origins of animation go as far back as 1879 and Eadweard Muybridge’s “zoopraxiscope” (see our doodle homage to Muybridge:goo.gl/PGQW3). Gifs have been around since 1987 and have become the de facto standard for short animations on the web, from pony glitter text (goo.gl/iZoEZ) to grumpy cat memes (goo.gl/bC9um).

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Google updated Chrome last month with a Web Speech API in over 30 languages that allows developers to integrate speech-recognition features into their Web apps, and now the company has launched a silent movie-era Chrome experiment, called “The Peanut Gallery”, that looks to showcase the month-old API.

The official Google blog has the story:

Last month, the Web Speech API brought voice recognition to Chrome users in more than 30 languages. We thought it would be fun to demonstrate this new technology by using an old one: silent film. The Peanut Gallery lets you add intertitles to old black-and-white movie clips just by talking out loud while you watch them. Create a film and share it with friends, so they can bring out their inner screenwriters too.

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Google launched a new Google Drive API on Tuesday that allows developers take advantage of realtime-editing functions.

Google Drive is known for its collaborative features, and now third-party app developers can specifically use the service’s new API to collaborate and edit text, spreadsheets, and presentations alongside other web users who can see the changes implement live.

“This new API handles network communication, storage, presence, conflict resolution, and other collaborative details so you can focus on building great apps,” explained Google on the Google Developers blog.

Drive users can notably edit their own work now, while simultaneously viewing real-time comments and changes from other users, and no longer need to download and re-upload entire documents for others to use. The Drive API will also keep track of who is connected and provide events for when collaborators join, leave, or make changes.

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Google allegedly plans to re-brand and unify its various chat services, like Google Talk, Hangout, Voice, Messenger, Chat for Drive, etc., under the new name “Babble”.

According to a Monday report by Geek.com, which cited “multiple sources reporting separately,” Google is developing a cross platform solution to compete with iMessage and BlackBerry Messenger. The solution is being buit “fresh from the ground up,” and it will come with an Android and Chrome OS app and sport the moniker “Babble”.

Geek.com has the story:

Babble continues Google’s trend towards organization by conversation. You can share photos in chat windows just like you would in G+ Messenger, start a Hangout with anyone in your contact list, and the conversations are threaded across all the existing services. Moving forward, the individual services will all be pushed onto the single platform, and you’ll be able to use the same chat window across all of Google’s products with the same features available everywhere. It’s not so much releasing a new product as it is pulling together all of the existing products under a single branding.

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Google’s much-discussed Nexus 5 might boast Nikon technology, according to a new rumor.

Phonearena reported on a tip Monday that claimed the handset’s camera module would feature a “triple camera sensor thing” and Nikon branding. The anonymous tipster also said the camera would be the Nexus 5’s main selling point.

It is worth mentioning that Google Senior Vice President of Engineering Vic Gundotra hinted at the camera quality of upcoming Nexus devices on his Google+ profile last month. When asked by a commenter about whether a future Nexus could replace a DSLR, Gundotra responded: “We are committed to making Nexus phones insanely great cameras. Just you wait and see.”

Also remember that Google and Nikon joined last year to launch the Android-powered, point-and-shoot Nikon Coolpix S800c. Google even acquired Nik software in 2012, which Nikon gave a minority equity investment to in 2005, as TechCrunch noted.

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CBS News sat down with the Google Doodle team on Friday to uncover the magic behind those famous, illustrated logos on the Google homepage.

Google often features its traditional logo in various modifications, otherwise known as Google Doodles, for special events or competitions, and a 13-member group of twenty-something artists and engineers currently make up the team responsible for them.

Google has paid homage to a multitude of holidays and anniversaries with its Doodles, and a few of the more notable ones in recent months include the 200th anniversary of Grimm’s Fairy Tales, 161st anniversary of Moby Dick’s First Publishing, and 107th anniversary of Little Nemo in Slumberland.

Betsy Bauer, a 24-year-old, who has been with Google for only six weeks, said she created today’s Doodle in honor of International Women’s Day, while lead engineer Kris Hom said the collaboration of artists and technologists, who notably all use Macs at the office, can take several months to create a doodle that is live for just 24 hours.

The team designs and builds roughly 300 Doodles a year, but Hom gushed and said the effort is worth it: “Sometimes I describe my job as ‘my job is to make everyone happy for 10 seconds, everyone on Earth.'”

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Microsoft, during its first direct suit against Google over patent infringements, has asked a Munich regional court to ban Google Maps in Germany, and the software giant could soon get its wish.

Microsoft alleged at a hearing on Thursday that Google infringed upon one of its patents, and, although another German court could rule that the patent is invalid, the regional court’s presiding judge insinuated he’s “leaning towards Microsoft’s arguments about Google’s infringement in this case,” according to a report by Fox Business. 

The judge also indicated a temporary ban on the Google Maps app might be “inappropriate” if Google could prove that it would permanently and negatively affect the company, but Google’s lawyer said it is “difficult to quantify the possible damage” of a ban. He also said it could have “significant consequences”—even if it’s later lifted.

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Google recreated some of the world’s most famous ads through “Project Re: Brief” last year, and now it has expanded the program to iconic brands with a new project called “Art, Copy & Code“.

Art, Copy & Code will include many famous brands like Volkswagen, Burberry, and Adidas, and the projects are in partnership with their creative teams and agencies. Others will feature collaborations with innovative filmmakers, creative directors, and technologists, and some of the final products will include ads, mobile apps, and social experiences.

Google’s first partner project, dubbed “Volkswagen Smileage“, is a new social driving experience. It’s basically just a social app for driving, according to the official Google blog:

Building off their 2012 campaign, “It’s not the miles, it’s how you live them,” Volkswagen Smileage is a mobile app and web service that aims to add a little bit of fun to every drive, from your daily commutes to holiday road trips. The app measures the fun factor of each trip using a metric called “smileage,” based on signals like weather, traffic, location, time and social interactions (e.g., a long drive on a sunny Saturday afternoon might accumulate more smileage than a morning commute in the snow). You can use it with any car, not just Volkswagens.

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The New York Times reported on Wednesday that Amplify’s CEO and former chancellor of New York City schools and News Corporation’s education division will jointly offer a 10-inch Amplify tablet equipped with Android OS, as well as a curriculum and infrastructure, for K-12 schoolchildren.

The touchscreen tablet will mostly land in the hands of middle-school children, and it will feature emoticons for student-teacher engagement, an “eyes on teacher” prompt for wandering eyes, and a unique design that marries technology with traditional teaching. Students can also take the tablet home at night and use it for fun.

New York City-based Amplify began testing its tablet in November 2012, but it only introduced the basic and high-end models today at SXSWedu 2013, according to The New York Times:

A preloaded tablet, training and customer care (largely from former teachers) starts at $299, along with a two-year subscription for $99 a year. A higher-end Amplify Tablet Plus, for students who do not have wireless access at home, comes with a 4G data plan and costs $349.

Amplify chief executive Joel I. Klein, who also serves as an executive vice president of News Corporation since 2011, will have tread carefully in regards to tracking children or using their data, as News Corp has been under a microscope in recent months over a much-publicized phone-hacking scandal.

Klein will also need to attractively market Amplify’s tablet in a space that is already brimming with competition attempting to capitalize on K-12 students. Apple, for instance, offers an education discount of 10-pack iPad minis and announced last week that it has sold a total of 4.5 million iPads direct to U.S. education institutions.

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The Android Market became Google Play exactly one year ago today, and Google is celebrating the marketplace’s first birthday and re-branding anniversary with a bevy of price drops and deals.

Check it out:
Google Play: Happy Birthday!

Google has marked down best-selling albums, such as “Talk That Talk” by Rihanna, and popular movies like “Intruder”, and it even slashed prices on TV shows, books, and magazines. The Internet Giant didn’t stop there, though. It decided to also offer exclusive gaming content for specific titles like Monster Pet Shop and Cloud+ Sheep.”

“Each of these games has some custom content to get you into the celebratory spirit – something unique to Google Play,” explained Google. “Explore, get some great deals and gifts and help us celebrate by having a blast. Get your gifts and get gaming.”

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Google consistently updates its Transparency Report to reflect its methods of keeping users’ data safe, and the company has continued this practice on Tuesday with the addition of U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation information requests.

According to a new post on the official Google blog, law enforcement agencies can request access to Google users’ data. The FBI, for instance, can issue a National Security Letter to get identifying information from Google, but it can also limit the company from publicly revealing such requests.

Google, however, has found a way to publicly air the amount of NSLs it regularly receives:

Starting today, we’re now including data about NSLs in our Transparency Report. We’re thankful to U.S. government officials for working with us to provide greater insight into the use of NSLs. Visit our page on user data requests in the U.S. and you’ll see, in broad strokes, how many NSLs for user data Google receives, as well as the number of accounts in question. In addition, you can now find answers to some common questions we get asked about NSLs on our Transparency Report FAQ.

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We first heard last year that Google looked to take down Amazon Prime with its own same-day shipping service, but a new report by TechCrunch now offers a few specifics about pricing.

According to the report that cited one unnamed source, Google will launch “Google Shopping Express” for about $69 or $64 a year. The service will feature, like Amazon Prime, same-day delivery from retail stores. TechCrunch also pointed to Google e-commerce project manager Tom Fallows as the project lead.

9to5Google also heard this service was coming, and we have some more somewhat wild information on the program. Google, in the long run, plans to use self-driving cars and flying drones as means of delivery. We also heard Google’s delivery project came from the Google X incubator headed by cofounder Sergey Brin.

We even postulated, after hearing Google began testing its same-delivery service in San Francisco, that Google’s recent acquisitions of BufferBox, a package pickup startup, could play a role in its delivery service.

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YouTube is larger than ever, but it’s not forking over enough ad money to programmers and partners.

AllThingsD posted a thorough look at YouTube—and talked to a few video makers— and decided the site’s generated ad revenue isn’t “keeping pace” with increasing views:

The dollars programmers earn from YouTube’s ad-selling efforts range widely. But many big publishers say that after YouTube takes its 45 percent cut of the ads it sells, they frequently end up keeping about $2.50 for every 1,000 views their clips generate — that is, if their video generates a million views, they get $2,500. Other publishers say their split can be as high as $10 per 1,000.

For context purposes, Psy, the Korean artist behind the viral hit “Gangham Style,” allegedly earned $870,000 from YouTube ad revenue by December 2012 on 889 million views. According to The New York Times:

TubeMogul, a video ad buying platform, estimates that PSY and his agent YG Entertainment have raked in about $870,000 as their share of the revenue from ads that appear with YouTube videos. The Google Inc.-owned video service keeps approximately half.

Psy’s popular hit has since clocked more than 1.3 billion views, but, if TubeMogul’s estimate is correct, he isn’t earning much per view.

YouTube invited programmers last fall to preview YouTube Space, a Los Angeles-based studio, and many of them apparently complained to YouTube executives the entire time about not making enough money. However, according to AllThingsD, video makers with their own sites can generate better payouts than what YouTube provides, and they “frequently cite CPMs, or ad rates, of $20 per thousand views.”

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Rovio, the brains behind the Angry Bird franchise, Bad Piggies, and Amazing Alex, announced on Friday that it teamed with DreamWorks to launch a new game for Android and iOS.

The game, called “The Croods”, goes along with DreamWorks’ upcoming 3D and CG animated feature film of the same name, and it will hit Google Play and Apple’s App Store for free on March 14.

“This all-new game finds the Croods breaking out of the Stone Age with the use of a new r-evolutionary tool: the IDEA,” explained Rovio in a blog post (sic). “The Croods will Hunt & Gather their way through spectacular new landscapes as they tame fantastic and never-seen-before creatures.”

DreamWorks’ film will land in theaters March 22. Check out the clip above for more details, or see the full press release below.

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