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Welcome back to the Weekly News Wr(app), the weekly Indus OS series that recaps the latest in the mobile and app industry.
In this week’s wr(app), we cover:
- Google makes changes in Android to comply with CCI orders; Indian startups call these cosmetic in nature
- Microsoft faces an antitrust probe by European Union
- ‘Made in India’ battle royale game Indus starts pre-registration on Android
Read the complete stories below:
Google makes changes in Android to comply with CCI orders; Indian startups call these cosmetic in nature
In order to comply with the directives of the Competition Commission of India, Google has announced three major changes in the Android ecosystem:
- Users will be able to choose their default search engine, instead of pre-setting Google Search as their default engine. They can select their preference via a choice screen whenever they start setting up a new Android phone or tablet.
- OEMs will be able to license Google apps individually for pre-installation on their devices, rather than licensing the entire suite together.
- Developers will be able to offer users the option to choose an alternative billing system for in-app purchases. This will be available for all the apps and games, starting next month.
The tech giant also mentioned that it is “updating Android compatibility requirements to introduce changes for partners to build non-compatible or forked variants” and it “recently made changes to the Android installation flow and auto-updating capability for sideloaded apps and app stores”.
The Indian tech community, however, is not happy with the changes made by the tech giant. Given that Google has only listed a few points out of the 10 directives by CCI, the developers say these changes in policies are “delaying tactics” and “cosmetic in nature”.
Rohan Verma, CEO of MapMyIndia pointed out, “despite CCIs directive, why is Google not allowing users to uninstall Google Maps and other apps and why is Google not allowing other app stores distributed through Google Play Store?”.
Read more here: http://bit.ly/3DrPs6u
Microsoft faces an antitrust probe by European Union
In its effort to address issues relating to digital platforms and competitions, European Union is now looking into the practices of Microsoft and if they restrict competition in the market. In 2020, the communications app Slack filed a complaint saying that the tech giant illegally leverages its dominance in the market and it should unbundle Microsoft Teams and other software with its Office Suite.
Microsoft Teams is an instant messaging, and video and audio conferencing platform that also allows file sharing, collaboration on documents, and various other features. It also integrates with other Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
Source: http://bit.ly/3HFxYG1
‘Made in India’ battle royale game Indus starts pre-registration on Android
Building an app in the fastest-growing games category, SuperGaming starts pre-registration for its upcoming battle royale game, Indus. The Pune-based game development company announced the pre-registration on January 26, as the nation marks its 74th Republic Day. The game is said to be heavily inspired by Indian culture and mythology and is set in a futuristic Indus Valley civilization.
Source: http://bit.ly/3jmgQvD
