A new report claims that Google LLC is preparing to launch a so-called smart display, a smart speaker with a screen, in time for the holiday season.

The report appeared Friday in Nikkei, Asia’s leading financial publication. The outlet quoted a source in the Taiwanese electronics industry as saying that Google is looking to ship 3 million units as part of the first batch for the planned smart display. That’s an ambitious goal based on the available sales data for competing products.

The most notable of the bunch is the Echo Show, the Alexa-powered smart display that Amazon.com Inc. launched last May. Nikkei cited data from Canalys, an influential technology market research firm, that showed the e-commerce giant sold just 315,000 Echo Show units in 2017.

Google’s reported optimism for its upcoming smart display might suggest the device features certain capabilities that exceed what Amazon offers. At a minimum, it’s safe to assume the system will provide strong support for YouTube. Google may also implement integrations with other services such as Google Maps.

Another factor that might explain why the company has such high hopes for the device is its rapid rise in the smart device market. Google overtook Amazon in smart speaker shipments this year, with Canalys’ data showing it accounted for 36 percent of the units shipped between January and March period, while Amazon’s Echo fell to 28 percent. Amazon had a 63 percent market share at the end of 2017, according to Canalys.

Google Assistant, the voice assistant that powers the company’s Google Home speakers, is already available in third-party smart speakers. Lenovo Group Ltd., Sony Corp. and LG Electronics Inc. are among the companies that offer compatible products.

Google’s entry into the market would create more competition for partners, but the company’s Pixel smartphone has demonstrated that it can successfully strike a balance under such circumstances. Nikkei’s source said that the smart display will be manufactured by Taiwanese electronics maker Pegatron Corp. Existing Google Home models are made by another Taiwanese firm called Quanta Computer Inc. that also produces Apple Inc.’s MacBooks. 

Image: Google