14 DAY TRIAL // A few days ago, we brought you news that Microsoft and Google had agreed to end a 5-year long patent dispute which included more than 20 ongoing lawsuits in the United States and Germany. The two tech giants have decided to work together to further resolve these “patent matters” in the future.
In the wake of this announcement, another steamy rumor has started making the rounds online. According to an Arabic website (as spotted on Reddit) Google is gearing up to announce a set of apps for Windows 10 Mobile at the upcoming Microsoft event scheduled for October 6, during which we expect to see the Redmond giant announce the Lumia 950 and Lumia 950 Windows 10 Mobile flagships.
The source believes that this means upcoming Windows 10 Mobile phones might arrive with a set of pre-installed Google apps like YouTube, Hangouts, Google Voice or Play Music. Remember that a few years back Google blocked the rather invasive Windows Phone YouTube app, but in 2015 things are bound to change.
However, you should take into consideration that the source bringing us this piece of news is a pretty obscure one, so take this tidbit with a healthy grain of salt, no matter how much you want it to be true.
Google and Microsoft to announce a strengthening of the bond?
One of the main reasons why the Windows Phone platform has been hobbling is the lack of an extensive app ecosystem. Developers aren’t motivated to develop for the platform because there aren’t enough users, and customers are avoiding the platform because there are no apps to use.
Google’s decision of staying away from the Windows ecosystem also revealed that the company believed that not participating would not hurt its position as dominant player in the mobile industry. But things are slowly starting to shift into a different direction and it seems that Google does no longer afford to ignore Windows like it used to back in the good old days.
While the presence of Google Services on Windows 10 Mobile might help boost adoption, Microsoft’s platform also presents some advantages, like the Xbox gaming platform. In recent years, Microsoft has shifted strategies, going from trying to squash the competition to trying to play nice.
Redmond has launched several of its apps for Android and iOS and is now officially making peace with Google in their patent feud. Could it be that the two tech giants are looking to take it to the next level?