In its bid to challenge rival Apple’s App Store, Google has set out on roping app developers for its Android platform. The Google-Apple rivalry has already heated the OS space and with the current move, Google is once again throwing a fresh challenge to Apple and iPhone application developers.
According to reports in various media, Benjamin Ling, product management director at Google is spearheading the effort wherein the company is targeting software engineers, product managers, UI specialists and other key specialists related with mobile app development to join their team.
The latest app development program will expand to all global offices of the company and deal with all varieties and genres in apps. There are reports that the apps developed through this venture are likely to be free so as to generate revenue.
Off late, Google is threatening Apple’s dominance in the smartphone industry. Last year sales figures show that Google’s Android has emerged out as a serious challenger to iPhone in some markets. Analysts and various research reports predict that various android based tablets are going to a serious threat to the growth of iPad in future.
It would be interesting to see how Apple and its iPhone developers respond to the present threat. The Cupertino giant has over 350,000 apps in its app store and has registered over 10 billion downloads since its introduction two and half years ago. Google, on the other hand, offers 130,000 apps to its users. Customers are usually inclined to buy a smartphone that is compatible to more apps and hence the sales of devices can be linked to the number of apps available for it.
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