This morning, Amazon offered a gift to consumers. It’s a present for Google, too.
Amazon’s offer, as Recode reported, is discounting Android phones that come packaged with Amazon’s apps, another stab from the e-retailer at securing a foothold in mobile. On the surface, it’s bad for Google: Its apps come pre-installed on the rebated phones, but so do Amazon’s.
But Google will welcome the news for that very reason. It’s currently facing antitrust charges in Europe, which is accusing Google of using Android to exclude other search engines, app stores and browsers. Amazon just poked a hole in part of that theory.
Google won’t say this out loud now. But here’s my best approximation of the argument their lawyers in Brussels are making: Look at what Amazon is doing!
It’s bittersweet news for Google, though. Even if Amazon doesn’t sell many of these phones, its move — both putting its apps on phones and marketing electronics aggressively — is a reminder of its looming threat to Google’s lucrative product search business.
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
Will you support Vox’s explanatory journalism?
Most news outlets make their money through advertising or subscriptions. But when it comes to what we’re trying to do at Vox, there are a couple of big issues with relying on ads and subscriptions to keep the lights on:
First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. We often only know a few months out what our advertising revenue will be, which makes it hard to plan ahead.
Second, we’re not in the subscriptions business. Vox is here to help everyone understand the complex issues shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. And we can’t do that if we have a paywall.
So even though advertising is still our biggest source of revenue, we also seek grants and reader support. (And no matter how our work is funded, we have strict guidelines on editorial independence.)
If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today? Any amount helps.
Yes, I'll give $5/month
Yes, I'll give $5/month
We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and
Google Pay. You can also contribute via