Google has quietly been stocking up on tools it will need to challenge Facebook in the social networking game, and says it's on the verge of launching a "social component" to a number of its core products.
Over the past month, Google (GOOG, Fortune 500) has made five acquisitions in the field: SocialDeck, a mobile social gaming company; Angstro, a social networking search application; Like.com, a social fashion store; Jambool, a social gaming virtual currency; and Slide, a social game maker. It also has a large stake in gaming giant Zynga
But before you start to arrange the puzzle pieces, analysts say don't bother.
"Trying to predict how Google will put everything together using acquisitions is a fool's game," said Josh Bernoff, analyst at Forrester Research. "It's highly unlikely that the pieces will emerge into some form."