Google (NASDAQ:) that its Android ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ app store and its Google Music, Google Books, and Google Movies offerings have been integrated and rebranded as Google Play.
Existing mobile devices will automatically update to the new system and the functionality and user interface of each service won’t undergo much change. For most services, users can choose whether a downloaded purchase is opened on a mobile device or on a PC. Google Books has the ability to remember the last read page when the user switches between devices, although the other services lack this feature, according to an review.
Google Play purchases will be entirely hosted on in the cloud. This means that Google will store the data on its servers at no additional charge, saving space on the user’s devices and easing the need for smartphone and tablet manufacturers to include increasing amounts of internal storage on the devices they produce. Cloud storage features are integral to Amazon’s (NASDAQ:) Kindle Fire devices and to Apple’s (NASDAQ:) iCloud, which is already available on iOS mobile devices but is also packaged with the forthcoming Mountain Lion operating system.
A Google Wallet mandate, and a Windows Mobile shift
It seems lately that no Google announcement can be made without an associated controversy. Google Play is no different. that Google has spent months pressuring developers to switch over to the Google Wallet payment system or have their applications excluded from the new marketplace. That would eliminate outside payment sources such as PayPal, which, like Wallet, requires linking to a user’s bank or credit account. The move could be seen as a streamlining of the payment process to benefit consumers or as an attempt to force the in-house payment option on developers and users alike.
Also, Microsoft (NASDAQ:) is following close on Google’s heels again by announcing its own marketplace overhaul. The company is its Windows Mobile ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½place in early May. Users with phones running a Windows Mobile operating system version that begins with six will no longer have access to Mobile ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½place to browse or purchase applications. The early warning was intended to give users time to update and download apps before the cutoff. The ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½place will still work with newer Windows Phone devices. It is a less-than-subtle hint from the company, though, that it would prefer that consumers upgrade to a newer model.
Mobile applications are proving to be a large business for the big three tech companies, though Google and Apple far exceed Microsoft in this arena. The Android ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ hit 10 billion downloads last December. The Apple App Store crossed the 25-billion-download mark this week.
