New Google Play vs Apple iTunes has started
Earlier today we told you about Google Play, formerly known as Android Market, and now we want to take a look at the new Google Play vs. Apple iTunes. Now that Google has gathered together its Android Market, Google eBookstore and Google music under one umbrella called Google Play it seems the competition against iTunes has really started.
The rebranding of various Google services under the name Google Play kicked off yesterday with updates for the Android Market to become the Google Play Store rolling out to mobile devices over the next few days. Video apps will become Google Play Movies, book apps will become Google Play Books while music apps will become Google Play Music. Users will be able to use the same log-in process.
The consolidation of the services follows the new Google privacy policy that integrated the vast majority of its privacy policies into one single policy and signifies that Google really means business. In fact as eWeek points out there are now over 450,000 Android apps and games available so inroads are being made against Apple’s App Store which currently has around 550,000 iOS apps. Whether Google will continue to be able to catch Apple in the apps market remains to be seen but concerted efforts are certainly being made. We should point out that the Apple App Store’s iOS apps are only for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad while Android apps cater for a proliferation of Android smartphones and tablets.
Nevertheless Google is stepping up the war for apps dominance against Apple at the same time as it has become entangled in a bitter Apple and Motorola patents dispute. Nobody yet knows which company may be on top of the mobile device market in five years time but it will certainly be interesting to follow developments. Of course we shouldn’t forget that Microsoft is also in the race to catch up with Google’s Android and Iater this year tablets running Windows 8 will be added to the mix to make the rivalry even more vigorous.
If you want to find out much more about Google Play then there’s a really in-depth look at exactly what it offers here. With the new Google Play consolidation of services do you think Google is really stepping up the competition against Apple’s iTunes? Tell us what you think with your comments.
Comments
3 thoughts on “New Google Play vs Apple iTunes has started”
i really like the new google play, its seamless and much more user friendly IMO
At least Google was smart enough to break out the names of their different “Play” categories. Going to “Google Play Books” sounds wonky, but makes way more sense than going to I-Tunes to buy books or movies which aren’t “Tunes” at all. The PLAY moniker pulls together all the fun things you can do with your devices, while the Books, Movies, Music and subbranches intuitively categorize the content.
It’s also nice that Google allows content providers to determine their own DRM settings, at least for e-books. You can choose to release free (no cost) DRM-free content, unlike Apple/I-Tunes, where everything is locked down. And can you get anything free from the I-tunes store? Maybe that’s changed, but it seems like you pay for everything you get from I-tunes so Apple can get their cut. This is awesome for shareholders, but sucky for users. Meanwhile, I’ve got hundreds of apps on my Samsung Droid Charge and haven’t paid a dime for any of them.
-Zero
My initial reaction was almost entirely negative, but perhaps that was because I’ve never been interested in iTunes. The main thing I noticed in my first wanderings around Google Play was that I often got stumped and there was no help to be found. Golden opportunity to collect real questions for a real FAQ, but Google obviously isn’t listening to the dull-witted peasants these days.
I’m pretty experienced with Android, but there were lots of problems here. I think the one that bothered me most was the reincarnation of a dead Android tablet. Look, Google, I hated that piece of garbage and I don’t even appreciate being reminded of it–and apparently there is no way to get rid of it yet.
After my first struggles I went and had a couple of talks with some iTunes users, and now it’s making more sense–but I still don’t like it and I think Google has already wasted their only chance to make a good first impression…