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 The Mountain View-Based company tied up with Indian handset makers
Micromax, Karbonn and Spice Mobiles to launch the 6,399 rupees
phone, which is powered by Google's operating system and targets the
booming low-cost segment of the world's fastest growing smartphone
market.
After launching in India, Google said it plans to expand Android One
to Indonesia, Philippines and other South Asian countries by the end
of 2014 and in more countries in 2015.
The company is working with partners including Acer Inc, HTC Corp
and Panasonic Corp to build more devices under Android One, Sundar
Pichai, who heads Google's Android and Chrome units, told reporters
at the India launch event in New Delhi.
"When (handset companies) look to make a phone, they will get a
menu. They can put together a device in a much quicker fashion,
knowing we've already tested the software," he added.
With Android One, Google aims to improve the quality of hardware and
software by giving handset makers a frame of reference. Strong sales
of Android One smartphones should mean more Internet access, and
more usage of Google's suite of products.
Currently, many cheap smartphones in India and other emerging
markets run different and somewhat customized versions of the
Android operating system. The many variations they produce make the
phones prone to glitches, and leave Google with almost no control
over its platform
Pichai said eventual software upgrades on the Android One phones
would come directly from Google. This gives the company better
control of the operating system and ensures users get a consistent
service.
"After China and the United States, India is the third largest
smartphone market in the world and Google won't like to leave such a
huge market in control of brands looking to use a custom-forked
Android OS as is happening in China," said Neil Shah, research
director for devices and ecosystems at Hong Kong-based technology
research agency Counterpoint Research.
LOW COST AND LOCAL
India is an attractive market for companies that make low-cost
smartphones because more people are now able to afford a smartphone,
often for the first time.
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Just 10 percent of the India's population currently owns a
smartphone, brokerage Nomura said in a recent research note, and
that figure is likely to double over the next four years.
There are at least 80 smartphone brands in India and analysts say
the Android One phones must offer customers more than just
affordability if Google wants to compete with Samsung Electronics Co
Ltd, Motorola and China's Xiaomi, which all make similarly priced
devices.
"The initial pricing never sticks but it'll be tough for them to
compete if they don't come down further," said Counterpoint's Shah.
Customizing web content to suit Indian customers is a priority for
Google, country head Rajan Anandan told Reuters last month. The new
Android One phones can be used in seven Indian languages, including
Hindi.
Google is also working on allowing users to watch YouTube videos
offline in a country where access to the internet is often pricey
and patchy.
($1 = 61.1000 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Tommy Wilkes in NEW DELHI and Nivedita Bhattacharjee
in MUMBAI; Editing by Miral Fahmy)
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