Google’s Strategy
Android
is clearly a powerful mobile device platform which costs an enormous amount in development. So
why did Google give Android away for free?
The answer starts with Google’s clearly defined mission (Corporate information:,about, n.d.):
Google’s mission is to organize the world’s information and make
it universally accessible and useful.
Cell phones are the most popular consumer device, numbering over 4
billion, so, by providing an advanced mobile stack at no cost, Google believes
they are fulfilling the universally accessible portion of their mission. But,
obviously there must still be some benefit for Google. When more people are online, more people
use search, which ultimately drives ad revenuedGoogle’s primary source of income. In a March 2009 interview, Andy Rubin explained:
Google has a great business model around advertising, and there’s
a natural connection between open source and the advertising business model.
Open source is basically a distribution strategy, it’s completely
eliminating the barrier to entry for adoption.
(Krazit, n.d.)
One of the criticisms of Android is that the market is now highly
fragmented with different versions and variations of Androidda direct result of how Google
releases Android to the manufacturers. This is in contrast to other
devices, such as the iPhone where Apple has total control over the hardware and OS and
significant influence over third-party application. Rubin defends this model, however.
In the same interview, Rubin further commented on this aspect (Krazit, n.d.):
Controlling the whole device is great, (but) we’re talking about 4
billion handsets. When you control the whole device the ability to innovate rapidly
is pretty limited when it’s coming from a single vendor. You can have spurts of
innovation. You can nail the enterprise, nail certain interface techniques, or you can
nail the Web-inthe- handset business, but you can’t do everything. You’re always going
to be in some niche. What we’re talking about is getting out of a niche and
giving people access to the Internet in the way they expect the Internet
to be accessed. I don’t want to create some derivative of the Internet,
I don’t want to just take a slice of the Internet, I don’t want to be in the
corner somewhere with some dumbed-down version of the Internet, I want to be on the
Internet.
So by creating a mobile OS that meets the demands of the consumer
as well as the needs of the manufacturers and wireless carriers, Google has
an excellent distribution
platform for their revenue-generating search and advertising business.
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