
The Google Australia Shopping Web site.
A post on the official Google Australia blog has announced the launch of Google Shopping in Australia. Available as a part of Google's search engine, the Shopping service lets Australian Google users find and compare store pricing for a wide range of products, ranging from consumer electronics to furniture and books.
The service can be accessed directly through the Google Shopping Web site, or users can select the Shopping tab on an completed Google search. The service is already available in other countries, with the UK and US versions called Google Product Search. Google Shopping has also recently launched in the Netherlands, Spain and Italy.
The Google Shopping Web site still includes a 'beta' notation in its logo. Search results are ranked according to relevance by default, although searches can also be organised by ascending or descending price. Filters are available on popular search categories — for example, a search for digital cameras can be refined with a specific price, brand, store or camera type. The price filter is available on any search.
Launching in tandem with Google Shopping is the Google Merchant Centre, which lets retailers submit their product pricing and information for inclusion in Google Shopping's listings. Retailers using Google's AdWords service can also now include their product details in advertising.