In one move (given its strong web presence), Google announced a plan to build on its online payment platform, Google Checkout, in a bid to create a universal system that will enable newspapers and other media producers to charge for their content online. Think of it as a gated community for that handles content created across multiple sites.

Google collects the micropayments, either through subscriptions or pay-as-you-go plans and distributes the money based on traffic or some other metric. The benefits for the producers are obvious, assuming they’re still able to pull in readers, but the boon for Google is twofold. They collect a percentage on the transactions and get to learn more about their audience’s habits. Which leads me to ask, will the public being willing pay, and will they have any choice?

The other deal is much farther afield. Google announced that it is working hard to improve the tech behind solar thermal heating systems. Essentially, seeking to improve the reflective surfaces to generate greater heat and more efficiencies. A plan that follows with its philanthropic quest to develop green technology, but also has the potential for big pay-outs given that the clean energy market is still relatively new.

But what’s most curious about this move, is that it appears to compete with Google’s early investments in solar, namely  eSolar and Brightsource. Apparently Google was unhappy with the level of innovations happening within this space and is seeking a more active role. This will have to be another wait and see, but with a working prototype expected in the next few months, it appears we’ll know soon enough.

[image via Yodel Anecdotal]

Unsurprisingly, Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore is ranked first, with Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN), Ronald Reagan UCLA (Los Angeles), Cleveland Clinic (Cleveland, OH), and Massachusetts General (Boston, MA) rounding out the top five. The rubric used is a gradation of complicated medical procedures – not an amalgam of figures on routine appendectomies – plus considerations of reputation, mortality rate, patient safety, and other care-related factors. (Specific details on the ranking system is archived here.)

One of the most important factors to consider for the future is how these outstanding hospitals are adapting high technology and how they can use new information and processes to further augment their good reputations. From five-foot robots who make regular doctors’ rounds in a critical care unit without disturbing other patients to radio frequency ID tags, to “smart” beds that transmit patient vital signs to the nurses’ desk, technology advancements are helping hospital operations in ways one could hardly conceive of even fifteen years ago. And according to industry analyst Datamonitor, spending on “telemedicine” will reach $2.4 billion this year and nearly triple to $6.1 billion by 2012. All this points to vast opportunity for investment in innovations that have healthcare applications.

Remote diagnosis, a robotic technology that allows a specialist in somewhere like Detroit to manage care in far-flung locales can make a major difference in time sensitive stroke management. Many also tout robots for highly-skilled surgical exploration, asserting that hands are steadier and provide a wider range of motion than human hands.

Healthcare information technology is another area with much room for improvement, and one that could vastly change the landscape of healthcare reform.   A program that could, say, digitize mass amounts of patient data, could speed diagnosis and eliminate unneccessary treatments and testing.

It’s an exciting time in the field of medicine, both for investors, innovative entrepreneurs and the target audience they seek to reach through these new technologies.