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>Epic’s proposal hurts device manufacturers: Part of the State AG settlement ensures that any app store is free to compete for placement on an Android device. B

by Xeamek 2y ago

>Epic’s proposal hurts device manufacturers: Part of the State AG settlement ensures that any app store is free to compete for placement on an Android device. But Epic’s proposal would cut Google Play out of this process, reducing competition and therefore enabling rival app stores to underbid. This would reduce what OEMs can earn from pre-installation and placement on their devices, cutting into already narrow OEM margins in a way that could raise consumer prices. Yea sure, apps stores are 'free to compete' but Google store HAS TO be installed out of the box if you want to have access to GMS services (alongside the entire suite of Google apps). Let's not play dumb here and pretend like current status quo isn't heavily favorable for Google

Spivak 2y ago
I don't like defending Google here but the status quo is also heavily favorable to users. For a good number of years users were begging Google to put their heel to the throats of OEMs who dropped support for their devices after only a few years, couldn't get the latest version of Android, couldn't run new versions of apps, and had to deal with the garbage OS customizations and apps OEMs shipped. People wanted a PC like experience where it doesn't matter what hardware you bought you ran the same Google provided software. And we're still not there yet. The marketing for the original Nexus devices was "Android with the Google stuff you wanted and not the OEM shovelware." I think it's a very reasonable stance that folks buying Android are doing so because they want and expect the Google stuff and this was just the stick Google had to get there.
- Xeamek 2y ago
  If "google stuff" was part of (open source) android OS, then sure. But it's not, it's exactly the same shovelware that any other OEMs push at You, except people give it a pass because "it's from google". My phone app should be my phone app, not google contacts. And sure, GMS integration are de facto 'the android experience', but let's not pretend like Google’s version of calendar being preloaded is crucial for GMS to work.

by Xeamek 2y ago

Spivak 2y ago

I don't like defending Google here but the status quo is also heavily favorable to users. For a good number of years users were begging Google to put their heel to the throats of OEMs who dropped support for their devices after only a few years, couldn't get the latest version of Android, couldn't run new versions of apps, and had to deal with the garbage OS customizations and apps OEMs shipped. People wanted a PC like experience where it doesn't matter what hardware you bought you ran the same Google provided software. And we're still not there yet. The marketing for the original Nexus devices was "Android with the Google stuff you wanted and not the OEM shovelware." I think it's a very reasonable stance that folks buying Android are doing so because they want and expect the Google stuff and this was just the stick Google had to get there.

Xeamek 2y ago
If "google stuff" was part of (open source) android OS, then sure. But it's not, it's exactly the same shovelware that any other OEMs push at You, except people give it a pass because "it's from google". My phone app should be my phone app, not google contacts. And sure, GMS integration are de facto 'the android experience', but let's not pretend like Google’s version of calendar being preloaded is crucial for GMS to work.