Google Empire Moves From Creating to Recreating

"They generated huge amounts of cash, but then they had the other business problem of 'What do you do for an Act II?' " Kay said. Google has "an opportunity as a big company with a lot of retained earnings to invest in businesses for the long haul."

But Google, with all its ventures -- including Android, which lays the foundation for many other programs for cellphones -- could also become a gateway for many other kinds of consumer technologies, Kay said.

Android, for example, allows Google to expand into cellphones in a way that makes it a common link for many new programs offered on the mobile Web and that in turn could allow the company to sell more ads, he said.

"It's all of the forces coming together with Google as the nexus," Kay said. "They're certainly poised to absorb the lion's share of all advertising revenue available."

This is a view shared by strategists at Google. Marissa Mayer, vice president of search products and user experience, said the company's core assets -- search, ads and applications -- will feed one another to keep the business model growing.

Better search makes for stronger applications, which translates to more users and eventually a stronger advertising business, she said.

"These are multiyear plays," she said. "We're in these businesses for the long term."

But trying to be everything to everyone means also having to please everyone, and that's a tough microscope to live under, said Simpson, the Yankee Group analyst.

Google is a well-known and recognizable brand in technology but not the first. Others who once dominated in their fields -- Yahoo and AOL, for example -- have struggled to redefine themselves and keep up with the newcomer's dominance.

"The first person to come along and do it better than Google could cause them to lose" the dominance, she said. "That's why they're interested in keeping their hands in so many pots."