Yesterday, Google was sued by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) over its dominant advertising business. And while not directly related, the company has now promised to make some changes to its Android business practices in India following a $161 million fine by the Competition Commission of India (CCI). .
Google will now allow smartphone vendors in India to license individual apps for pre-installation on their Android devices. The company is amending its business agreements with phone makers so that they are not forced to bundle Google apps with their devices by default.
Additionally, Google will also allow users to change search engines and choose a third-party billing system through the choice screen. Other, more technical, changes are listed below:
- We are updating the Android compatibility requirements to introduce changes for partners to create asynchronous or forked variants.
- Android has always supported the installation of apps through various means, including through sideloading, which includes app downloads directly from the developer’s website. We recently made changes to the Android installation flow and auto-update ability for sideloaded apps and app stores while ensuring users understand potential security risks.
Google has emphasized. That these are complex changes that will take time and the cooperation of all parties involved:
Implementing these changes across the ecosystem will be a complex process and will require significant work on our end and, in many cases, significant efforts from partners, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and developers. . Our commitment to the digital transformation of Indian consumers and the country is unwavering.
Although Google says it will continue to appeal the CCI’s decision, it has agreed to implement changes to comply with the order for now. It is also important to understand that all these changes are limited to the Indian market only and are not meant to be applied globally.
Source: Google through Tech Crunch
