We learned of Google’s acquisition intentions for  HomeAway a few weeks ago, and now the official news confirms that Google has bought shares of the travel search tool, with estimates of the deal valued at $25 million.

Google’s investment into the vacation rental service has its own advantages, no matter the perspective; for HomeAway, which operates in U.S., Europe and Brazil, the move is an opportunity to develop towards technological improvements and website optimization, in order to increase its current user database of 540,000 rentals spread across 120 countries, with aims to target the Asian and Australian markets as well.

HomeAway seems a good investment for Google, as it localizes its search and advertising systems, and looks to deliver query answers instead of mere results. Not only the financial prosperity and predicted growth of HomeAway has determined Google to act wisely, but it is also debated that this might be an approach of Google to define the search index with vacation rentals.

Google has also made some recent investments in travel related domains, such as ITA acquisition, SignPost, Ngmco or Pixazza. Google is obviously trying to meet the needs of today’s internet user, to satisfy its desire for useful content, using the emerging online marketing strategies.  It’s an area of contention for Google and Microsoft Bing, which came out the gate with a format similar to what Google’s working towards in that regard.

In terms of development, Google also announced the Google Goggles marketing experiment. Within this new environment, internet users are free to engage with their brands or appealing products via a photograph taken by their smartphone; the specific Google Goggles app will recognize the product,  identify the advertisement and will offer relevant information to the user.  New age QR codes?  The guinea pigs for this experiment are Buick, Disney, Diageo, T-Mobile and Delta Airlines.  From Google’s blog:

“We developed Google Goggles so that people could more easily explore the world around them with a mobile device. In this experiment, we’re applying the same principles, and the same technology, by ‘Goggles-enabling’ advertisements and other media, and offering to link people to the mobile sites from these brands.”