Android needs help.
… explains a bewildered Om Malik at Gigaom. Figures taken from AdMob’s latest report yesterday estimate Google’s Android Market sales at a measley $5 million a month paling vastly in comparison with Apple’s hugely successful App Store. Although surprising, it’s not necessarily shocking. To understand the root of this, it’s well worth going back to the business model itself.
When Google launched the Android on the 7th of November 2007, and later Android Market on the 22nd of October 2008, it explained that it wasn’t out there to be the next iPhone. Instead it was out there to be the…
In short, it billed itself as the answer to all mobile phone manufacturers’ and wireless operators’ OS development problems. By creating an open source, standard user interface for all mobile phones it would release manufacturers’ from having to create interface systems for each mobile. Rather than a rival to Apple’s iPhone, it was a pot shot at the incumbent Windows Mobile (soon to become Windows Phone). However, Android is now seen as one of the many struggling ‘me toos’ in a battle against the iPhone.
The problem arises in the lack of desirability of the Android phones’ designs, features, apps and public perception, coupled with the equally undesirable pricing.
Google needs to invest more control over the handset design, battery performance, larger screen and faster controls, things which should make Android phones better than the iPhone. It equally needs to really invest time into fostering a thorough developer community, whilst stressing the open source nature of Android and endless possibilities of this. In doing this the Android becomes a more worthwhile item to part cash with.
Yet in order to truly increase the developer community the public perception of Android must shift from an obscure geek’s toy to a seriously desirable consumer handset. As it stands, most consumers are still largely unaware of Google’s Android, less still, of the manufacturers providing Android on their phones. Fewer consumers aware of Android results in fewer sales for Android app developers resulting in fewer Android app developers resulting in fewer Android consumers. A clichéd vicious circle. Google must invest in a consumer education campaign pushing the boat out on publicity.
To top it off, their top range phone the HTC Hero/Touch G2 isn’t available on Pay as You Go and is restricted to T-Mobile contracts with pricing identical to O2′s iPhone contracts. On eBay it sells for an average of £300 a mere £42 less than the iPhone on Pay as You Go. As it stands, if you’re going to part with that much cash, you may as well part with it on the most ‘ummed aaaahhd’ phone on the market, rather than an Android. Just being open source isn’t enough.
If Google want to see Android as a serious competitor in a monopolised market, they need to start thinking seriously. Fast.