Google, primarily a search company, has suddenly forayed into hardware, application software, OS development, Mobile OS development, web browser development, peripherals, media distribution, and likely TBA, fast food chains and department stores.
"Suddenly"... isn't that a bit dramatic. A few of those purchases were from a few years back.
Google purchased YouTube in 2006.
Google purchased 'Android' in 2005
Google are an internet based company - Search Engine, so I'd say its a natural progression to venture into Web browsers, and ( web based ) operating systems, Chrome. Nice integration with their online tools.
Google cannot stay purely as a Search Engine, otherwise they'd probably stagnate - to survive long term they have to look into new opportunities.
That's the point.
While Apple was 'smearing the bulls-eye' by producing droves of peripherals and redundant products, amidst their already convoluted product lines, they were failing miserably.
In 1997, when Steve Jobs returned and paired down Apple's offerings significantly, things turned around dramatically.
Apple had always been a computer hardware/software company.
Google, primarily a search company, has suddenly forayed into hardware, application software, OS development, Mobile OS development, web browser development, peripherals, media distribution, and likely TBA, fast food chains and department stores.
Their "me too" motivation has become blatantly obvious, while it has treaded, quite heavily, upon MS's territory.
All in all, competition, from this perspective, isn't all that bad, if not highly amusing.