Google's Glass Accessory Store Is Coming Online (Wow. Stuff's Expensive!)
Google is bringing an official accessory store for Google Glass online this evening, based on reports first shared in a private Google forum for Glass Explorers. — The store appears to be part of the “My Glass” …
Context & Ripple Effects
Google Glass's ecosystem had been framed around software as well as hardware: September coverage pointed to a Glass app store planned for 2014. The reported accessory storefront would add a commerce layer to the My Glass experience while the product remained oriented toward Glass Explorers.
The report was widely picked up, but the store's arrival was still reported rather than independently confirmed in the supplied record. Its emphasis on expensive add-ons makes the cost of owning Glass broader than the device itself.
First-order effects
- If the report is accurate, Glass Explorers gain an official channel for buying add-ons, with Google controlling the purchase experience through My Glass.
- Highlighted accessory pricing raises the immediate all-in ownership cost for Explorers who need replacements or additional hardware.
Second-order effects
- Google's planned app marketplace and an accessory storefront would concentrate both software discovery and physical add-on purchasing in Google-managed channels, giving it more control over the Glass experience.
- Higher add-on costs make accessory value more consequential to Explorer adoption, increasing pressure on Google to show why those purchases improve the device's utility.
Third-order effects
- If Google pairs device accessories with the planned app store, Glass points toward a managed wearable ecosystem in which the platform owner governs extensions on both the software and hardware sides.
- That structure makes ecosystem breadth—not the headset alone—a key measure of Glass's appeal, though the supplied record does not establish how broad the accessory catalog will be.
The trend: Wearable platforms are beginning to build controlled commerce layers around both device hardware and companion software.