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Weekly News For You To Stay Updated With The App Industry
We bring to you a comprehensive list of everything you need to know about what happened in the app industry in the last week. We cover how alternative app stores might be benefiting in the coming future, how Microsoft announced its mobile gaming store at the right time, and some really cool features by users’ favorite apps Flipkart and IRCTC.
Read on.
CCI poses a penalty of INR 1337.76 crores on Google for Anti-competitive practices
The Competition Commission of India has penalized Google for abusing its dominant position in the Android market. Even though Android is supposed to be an Open Source OS, it does not serve its purpose. OEMs working on Android folk cannot provide the same experience to the users due to Google’s restrictions. To rectify the same, the country’s watchdog has issued a cease and desist order along with a monetary penalty. Read how it affects the stakeholders here.
MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, Oyo Face CCI Penalties Totalling Rs. 392 Crore for Unfair Business Practices
Since we are talking about how CCI is ensuring fair practices and competition in the country, the watchdog has also penalized the travel tech giants and hospitality services on account of MakeMyTrip, and GoIbibo giving preferential treatment to Oyo on its platform. It was also alleged that MMT-Go imposes a price parity in their agreements with hotel partners as per which they are not allowed to sell their rooms on any other platform or on its own online portal at a price below the price at which it is being offered on MMT-Go. Read more here.
Microsoft Announces To build an Xbox Mobile Gaming Store
In an attempt to bring the Xbox game shopping experience to smartphones, The software giant revealed details of the ‘next generation’ store it would build for games in filings with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The shop would unsurprisingly lean heavily on content from the proposed Activision Blizzard merger. This would also immensely boost Microsoft’s mobile gaming and ad revenue. This piece of news come at the right time, just when alternative app stores are given a level playing field in the Android market. Read more about it here.
Flipkart Launches Metaverse Shopping Experience
For a more interactive discovery and shopping experience, Flipkart experiments with web3 offerings to supercharge its customer experience. The company has partnered with eDAO, a Polygon-incubated firm, to launch the metaverse offering, which it is calling Flipverse. Currently, to enter Flipverse, users have to scan a QR code from ‘Firedrops by Flipkart’ on their desktop. Flipkart has tied up with several brands for this metaverse shopping experience. Shoppers can buy shoes and other sportswear from Puma, wearables from Noise, beauty products from Nivea, bags from Lavie, and even two-wheelers from TVs. Read more about it here.
IRCTC Adds New ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ Option
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has enabled ‘Travel Now, Pay Later’ (TNPL) option in its travel app, IRCTC Rail Connect. In collaboration with CASHe, IRCTC rolled out this feature on October 19, 2022, offering passengers to book their tickets in a jiffy and pay later in 3-6 months EMI. Read more about it here.
Netflix Launches New ‘Profile Transfer’ Feature To Help Monetize Account Sharing
Netflix announced that it has globally launched a new ‘Profile Transfer’ feature that will allow a user on an existing account to switch to a brand new account without rebuilding their account from scratch. This means their customized recommendations, viewing history, and other personal data will not be erased. Netflix’s rollout of this feature comes just after months of the company’s plans to crack down on password sharing. Read more about it here.
