Google Inc. is reported to be planning the launch of a new service that will connect users with home service providers.

Buzzfeed claims that “sources close to the company” say the new service will link local home-service providers, such as plumbers and electricians, to Google users, and will be revealed at an advertising conference later this spring.

The product is said to integrate into Google’s core search offering and will capitalize on search intent, such as turning queries about home improvement tasks into “engagement” with home-service providers.

According to the separate report from the more credible Wall Street Journal, the new service will be along the lines of how Google currently offers special results for flights, hotel rooms, products and, most recently, car-insurance quotes, and that service providers would be able to upload their schedules to Google, where users could sign up for an appointment.

The new service would pit Google against Amazon, who launched Amazon Home Services March 30th, a service that offers hand-picked professionals, upfront pricing based on quality and availability, verified reviews, and a “happiness guarantee,” which is said to ensure that customers can obtain refund if they aren’t happy with the service provided.

The new service actually wouldn’t be the first time Google has shown an interest in the home services market, with its venture arm Google Ventures having participated in a $100 million Series D round for Thumbtack Inc., a San Francisco based local services site. According to reports, Thumbtack isn’t involved with the new service, which is said to be being developed by Googles’s advertising technology team.

Although speculation until announced, it is likely that the new service will be integrated into Google My Business, Google’s service that allows small businesses to advertise based on the type of business they are in.

Estimates of the size of the home services market in the United States vary between $250 billion and $400 billion, but no matter which figure is closest to the truth, even a small slice of the pie, presumably via way of a referral fee for Google playing the middleman, will make the potential service well worth the effort.

photo credit: Apprentice Electrician via photopin (license)