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Coupled with the recent news of Samsung "buying" popular apps (at least one thus far) to be available only on Samsung phones, this is really bad news for Google

Coupled with the recent news of Samsung "buying" popular apps (at least one thus far) to be available only on Samsung phones, this is really bad news for Google as they lose control to Samsung.

fakeer 13y ago
It was sort of tit for tat. Purchase of Motorola was one step. The day Google announces the buy, the next day Samsung announced a big strategic partnership with MS[1] and the CEO clearly said in the press conference they were not aware of the deal. Samsung realized if they play by Google's rules they will be reduced to Google's puppets and the string could be pulled at any time. Like releasing the code later than others for e.g. their own Motorola. Another thing was Once the phone was sold, Samsung provided support, updates without any additional income - whereas Google kept on earning money through content alone. Samsung is too big to be just another OEM, though it will need need a HUUUGE culture (work culture, hierarchy, their senior-junior obedience mechanism) to be a software and content provider success. Because the oldies are not going to make new things. [1] Can just be co-incidence as well.
MekaiGS 13y ago
May be that's why Google has been integrating most of the new features within the Play Store and the Google search app instead of a OS release. You can try to fork Android all you want but would the buyers be okay with losing the latest headlining features from Google?
gurkendoktor 13y ago
Speaking of Google... Why do you think they still chose the S4 as the next Nexus model? Appeasement? Hope that people accidentally buy a Nexus S4 instead of a TouchWiz S4? Intuitively, it doesn't seem to make sense for either company.
- artsrc 13y ago
  I would prefer a Nexus software S4 to a Samsung software S4. I can't see any significant way that it is worse for Google for people to have their software rather than Samsung's. Although neither S4 justifies the price jump from a cheap Nexus 4 for me. And assuming some people want a high end "Nexus Experience" phone, Samsung gets more customers this way, than if Google went with HTC.
  - gurkendoktor 13y ago
    Sorry, I was taking it as a given that a new Nexus phone would be announced. So my question was more along the lines of: Why would Google choose Samsung and not support HTC, Asus, LG or its own Motorola instead?
- hkmurakami 13y ago
  Google - a desire to grow their Nexus brand and increase non-techy mindshare. Samsung - in-line with their conventional shot-gun "catch-all" product portfolio strategy.
- nobodyshere 13y ago
  s4 is the most popular mobile handset with android on board. I'm personally very pleased to see this coming with pure os and without samsung's bloatware that one can't even delete so easily. And cyanogen is just bad for s4 for well known reasons.
  - gurkendoktor 13y ago
    > s4 is the most popular mobile handset with android on board That's exactly why I think it is a bad idea :) Why drive the Android device market towards a monopoly? It ties both Google's business and Android's success to a single player.
Oletros 13y ago
What app has Samsung "bought"? Genuine curiosity
- georgemcbay 13y ago
  I'm not aware of them outright buying any apps, but they did make a deal with the ITV Player people to make the newest versions of that app Samsung device specific for a pretty substantial period of time. Of course, I've never even heard of ITV Player until that deal became public and it is a two-star app on the app store, so I'm not sure that matters much in the great scheme of things.
  - Oletros 13y ago
    Well, the pretty substantial period of time is until August 31 and is almost a betatesting period according to ITV themselves: "ITV says it's offering the app exclusively to Samsung "for an initial period while we endeavor to optimize and improve the experience before releasing to other device manufacturers."" http://www.engadget.com/2013/05/09/samsung-itv-player-android-app-exclusive/ http://www.engadget.com/2013/05/09/samsung-itv-player-androi...
  - koyote 13y ago
    Wow, I had not even seen that. I do not know how I feel about this. ITV is one of the biggest TV stations in the UK and their mobile player being Samsung only is pretty aggravating: "Our intention is to extend this supported device list to as many Samsung devices as we can and to that end, we would appreciate your feedback." Am I now a second-class citizen on android for having an (LG) Nexus device? https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=air.ITVMobilePlayer https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=air.ITVMobileP...
  - mcintyre1994 13y ago
    For the UK this is more significant than you may be aware of based solely off its app/rating. ITV is the biggest independent TV network here.

Coupled with the recent news of Samsung "buying" popular apps (at least one thus far) to be available only on Samsung phones, this is really bad news for Google as they lose control to Samsung.

fakeer 13y ago

It was sort of tit for tat. Purchase of Motorola was one step. The day Google announces the buy, the next day Samsung announced a big strategic partnership with MS[1] and the CEO clearly said in the press conference they were not aware of the deal. Samsung realized if they play by Google's rules they will be reduced to Google's puppets and the string could be pulled at any time. Like releasing the code later than others for e.g. their own Motorola. Another thing was Once the phone was sold, Samsung provided support, updates without any additional income - whereas Google kept on earning money through content alone. Samsung is too big to be just another OEM, though it will need need a HUUUGE culture (work culture, hierarchy, their senior-junior obedience mechanism) to be a software and content provider success. Because the oldies are not going to make new things. [1] Can just be co-incidence as well.

MekaiGS 13y ago

May be that's why Google has been integrating most of the new features within the Play Store and the Google search app instead of a OS release. You can try to fork Android all you want but would the buyers be okay with losing the latest headlining features from Google?

gurkendoktor 13y ago

Speaking of Google... Why do you think they still chose the S4 as the next Nexus model? Appeasement? Hope that people accidentally buy a Nexus S4 instead of a TouchWiz S4? Intuitively, it doesn't seem to make sense for either company.

artsrc 13y ago
I would prefer a Nexus software S4 to a Samsung software S4. I can't see any significant way that it is worse for Google for people to have their software rather than Samsung's. Although neither S4 justifies the price jump from a cheap Nexus 4 for me. And assuming some people want a high end "Nexus Experience" phone, Samsung gets more customers this way, than if Google went with HTC.
- gurkendoktor 13y ago
  Sorry, I was taking it as a given that a new Nexus phone would be announced. So my question was more along the lines of: Why would Google choose Samsung and not support HTC, Asus, LG or its own Motorola instead?
hkmurakami 13y ago
Google - a desire to grow their Nexus brand and increase non-techy mindshare. Samsung - in-line with their conventional shot-gun "catch-all" product portfolio strategy.
nobodyshere 13y ago
s4 is the most popular mobile handset with android on board. I'm personally very pleased to see this coming with pure os and without samsung's bloatware that one can't even delete so easily. And cyanogen is just bad for s4 for well known reasons.
- gurkendoktor 13y ago
  > s4 is the most popular mobile handset with android on board That's exactly why I think it is a bad idea :) Why drive the Android device market towards a monopoly? It ties both Google's business and Android's success to a single player.

Oletros 13y ago

What app has Samsung "bought"? Genuine curiosity

georgemcbay 13y ago
I'm not aware of them outright buying any apps, but they did make a deal with the ITV Player people to make the newest versions of that app Samsung device specific for a pretty substantial period of time. Of course, I've never even heard of ITV Player until that deal became public and it is a two-star app on the app store, so I'm not sure that matters much in the great scheme of things.
- Oletros 13y ago
  Well, the pretty substantial period of time is until August 31 and is almost a betatesting period according to ITV themselves: "ITV says it's offering the app exclusively to Samsung "for an initial period while we endeavor to optimize and improve the experience before releasing to other device manufacturers."" http://www.engadget.com/2013/05/09/samsung-itv-player-android-app-exclusive/ http://www.engadget.com/2013/05/09/samsung-itv-player-androi...
- koyote 13y ago
  Wow, I had not even seen that. I do not know how I feel about this. ITV is one of the biggest TV stations in the UK and their mobile player being Samsung only is pretty aggravating: "Our intention is to extend this supported device list to as many Samsung devices as we can and to that end, we would appreciate your feedback." Am I now a second-class citizen on android for having an (LG) Nexus device? https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=air.ITVMobilePlayer https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=air.ITVMobileP...
- mcintyre1994 13y ago
  For the UK this is more significant than you may be aware of based solely off its app/rating. ITV is the biggest independent TV network here.