Bloomberg reported that Google is negotiating with Samsung to remove Bixby and Galaxy App Store. It wants Samsung to promote its Google apps. It’s said that Google is willing to give Samsung a huge amount of money for the deal.
Google Negotiating with Samsung to Kill Bixby and Galaxy App Store
In the US, Samsung is the biggest Android smartphone maker. Although it’s using the Android operating system, it has its own ecosystem that runs Bixby voice assistance and its Galaxy app store. Indeed, Google’s own apps and products are still accessible through Samsung’s phones. However, Samsung has its own buttons to make Bixby more accessible to its users.
Samsung has invested a lot of money to develop Bixby, which launched in 2017. However, the voice assistant isn’t really successful.
That’s why Samsung bought Viv Labs. It was the same startup founded by Siri’s creators. The goal of acquiring it was to improve Bixby. However, Samsung’s voice assistant still couldn’t compete with the big guys, like Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant.
There are many benefits that Google can get from this deal but not so much with Samsung.
Pandemic and Smartphone Sales
The pandemic affected the sales of smartphones. Samsung, for one, experienced a decline in its sales. Thus, at this moment, it has less trade power. And if it would agree with Google, Samsung would get a huge pay.
As mentioned, Google is willing to pay Samsung big bucks just to ensure that its ecosystem is prominent in every Samsung smartphone.
Currently, Google joins other tech giants to persuade lawmakers in the US that it is not abusing its power. The anti-trust scrutiny started because of Google’s mandatory service bundling on every Android phone.
Indeed, Samsung can create its own digital assistant and app store, just like other Android handset makers. It’s said to be one of the best features of Android.
But users in China can’t rely on the Play Store because it is not available in the country. In that case, Samsung’s Galaxy App store is useful. But the handset maker’s own app store doesn’t thrive in China.
The deal may be finalized by Friday. However, the Galaxy Note 20 will be launching next week. In that case, you won’t see dramatic changes in its software. However, if the deal is finalized, we’ll be seeing more of Google Assistant and Play Store on Samsung’s handsets in the future.
Meanwhile, Google removed 19 Android apps amid safety and security fears. These apps have been downloaded many times. As issued by an intelligence research team, these apps could fill devices with unwanted ads. If the device is unclocked, the ad could take over. If plugged into a charger, it could launch an annoying attack.
Adware can generate revenue by displaying online ads that can pop up in the user interface during installation. Thus, if you notice that you start seeing those get-rich-quick secrets or miracle weight loss programs, then you know that you have downloaded adware.
Although those apps have been deleted by Google, users must still delete them from their own phones. To see the list of those apps, please visit this site.
