Google to launch Twitter-like service for Gmail

Google reportedly plans to add a Twitter-like service to Gmail later this week. Twitter, in case this is your first day on the Web, is a microblogging service that allows users to post messages of up to 140 characters, which are displayed on the author's profile page and delivered to subscribers. Facebook also offers a status update system.

While Gmail users can already set their status, each update overwrites the previous message. Google plans to extend this feature, allowing Gmail users to view a stream of status updates from people they choose to connect with. It will also be tightly integrated with YouTube and Picasa, Google's video and image-sharing services.

Yahoo introduced a similar "status-casting" feature last year, which allows users read their contacts' 140-character updates via Yahoo Mail or Messenger, as well as Flickr, Twitter and others. It's unclear whether Google will link Gmail status updates to rival social-networking services, but it seems like it would be beneficial.