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Imagine being able to play any game online through your browser, on any computer, anywhere.

Full resolution gaming, no discs, downloads or wading through slow installation processes.

That's what gaming start-up Gaikai, Orange County, is soon to offer. And to take things even further, CEO and co-founder David Perry's vision is that you will soon be able to pause a game on your PC and continue where you left off on your phone.

There were three main points that got us excited about Gaikai. The first is the prospect of a full gaming experience in your browser - being able to jump into a game of Need for Speed or Medal of Honour with a couple of clicks, without waiting for large demos to download and wading through the installation process.

The second is how it works as a marketing tool, removing friction in the demo process, and enabling potential buyers to trial a game and make a decision within a matter of minutes.

Once you clicked what lookes like a regular web banner, you're transported into a full blown demo right in the same window.

This could sit on the New York Times' homepage, games forums or review sites. This definitely poses more potential for the humble web banner; no longer as online billboards but as mini content capsules containing useful information, video etc. And now, with Gaikai's technology, full blown gaming experiences.

What about retailers? In a listing for Grand Theft Auto for example, Amazon would be able to let customers jump right into a demo without moving them away from the shopping experience, making conversion from trial to purchase as seamless as possible, in theory making the customer more likely to hit the buy button.

Lastly, it's what this can do to Facebook, and social gaming in general. Compared to how we play and connect with our friends on consoles (Xbox Live for example), Scrabble, Mafia Wars and Farmville on Facebook seem pretty pedestrian.

Gaikai in theory will enable you to start up a game of Mario Kart with your friends on your favourite social network, regardless of connection speed/computer and location - it can bring cult console gaming with your friends right into your browser. We imagine there will be smart ways to integrate this into wall posts, events, virtual currency and all the other regular social features. It's a very exciting prospect and one that could see us neglecting our virtual Farmville patch indefinitely.