14 DAY TRIAL // Google is launching an updated Android Market that comes with a new look, better layout and, in the US, Video rentals and Book store sections. The new Android Market will be rolled out to all users in the coming weeks.
"We’ve been hard at work improving Android Market to give you new ways to find great applications and games, purchase books, and rent movies. Today, we’re releasing a new version of Android Market which makes all of these available," Paul Montoy-Wilson, product manager for the Android Market, announced.
The first thing you'll notice is the new look. The new Android Market seems inspired by the Windows Phone 7 design mantra.
There are tiles everywhere, making navigation a bit more intuitive and everything easier to see.
Google boasts that featured content will be fresher, more relevant and also easier to discover. There are also more top chart categories to browse for content.
These and other changes should make it easier to find new apps and games, something that's been a problem for the Market app.
But the big change is the addition of the Movies and Books tiles. Users were already able to buy books from the Google eBooks store from the dedicated app.
Likewise, the video store app enabled them to rent movies for streaming and download straight to their phones.
But both of these features are now built into the Market app, making them much more visible and, hopefully for Google, encouraging more people to buy books or rent movies.
Any book bought via the Market will be available across devices, since it's linked to the eBook store. Likewise, any video you rent, you'll be able to watch on YouTube on any device.
The video and book sections are only available in the US, but Google says that it will be launching the stores in other countries. The new Market app though is available to users worldwide.