Is there a point?
I've played with buzz a very _little_ bit. I'm not exactly sure.... if it really has a point. I know it is supposed to be twitter "like". Really it is more about your location and what is going on around you, rather than what is going on in general. Also, it doesn't seem like you can sign up for bot-esque accounts, nor have they mentioned any API. So twitter will still be better in the fact that it can give you automatic news.
It's Google trying to do what they always do. Compete with stuff that already exists. Sometimes it pays off, sometimes it doesn't.
Didn't they already do this with the (unsucessful) Okourt (or something with some weird name).
Yeah, it's Orkut. Apparently really popular in some countries, but it never really took off in the UK.