[ad_1]
Google is preparing for a major change in its business model in response to a record EU fine imposed this summer on the rules imposed by Google on Android handset manufacturers who want to have access to the OS , rules that require such manufacturers to configure their own search engines and web browsers as default offers.
Now, in response to the EU's decision, Google announces that it will for the first time abandon its Android operating system for free to put it on as many devices as possible. Google will now charge licensing fees to Android device manufacturers wishing to offer pre-installed handsets with applications such as Gmail and YouTube within the EU. In another major change, per CNBC, Google will also end the restrictions on phone manufacturers selling Android versions of Android.
"Previously," CNBC "Google has linked a suite of 11 different apps that phone makers should pre-install if they wanted to get a license for its app store, Play. In July, the EU said the bundle was anti-competitive – pushing consumers to Google's search engine and weakening rival app makers – although it only asked Google to separate Chrome and Search from Play . "
The financial details of this transfer will be little known to Google, which will start selling a license for a package including Gmail, YouTube, Maps and Google Play Store. Google will also sell a separate license to manufacturers of Android devices wishing to use Google Search and Chrome, but pair them with the services of their competitors. Among other things, we do not know for the moment what is the cost of these licenses.
Here is more than The New York Times about the story and what it all means: "According to regulators, by forcing handset manufacturers to charge free applications with the Android operating system, Google had eliminated its competitors. With the company now having to separate its services in Europe, handset manufacturers such as Samsung and Huawei will now have greater flexibility in choosing the applications they want to pre-install on their phones. "
Android's paper is the most widely used mobile operating system in the world. More than 80% of smartphones use Android, as well as more than 24,000 types of devices.
"Use Android," reports the NYT"Allowed companies like Samsung to compete with Apple's iPhone without having to create their own software. By providing Android free to any device manufacturer to use and modify, Google has helped make the software available everywhere – on phones, tablets, cars and refrigerators. But the company has linked the use of the popular Play Store, in which customers can download more than a million applications created by external developers, to the requirements for device manufacturers to offer other advertising-based services, such as Google's search engine and web browser. "
Some device makers complained to European regulators that Google's conditions prevented them from producing high-performance devices that did not rely heavily on Google apps. Now, presumably, they have more freedom to try to do it.
"In the future, Android partners wishing to distribute Google applications could also build smartphones and tablets not compatible or forked" in Europe, said Google in a blog published today. "Second, device makers will be able to license Google's mobile apps separately from the Google Search App or the Chrome browser. Since the pre-installation of Google Search and Chrome, as well as our other apps, allowed us to finance the development and free distribution of Android, we will introduce a new fee-based license agreement for smartphones and tablets delivered in the EEA. Android will remain free and open source. "
Image Source: John G Mabanglo / Epa / Shutterstock
Source link
