Google Phone Could Drive Apple Into Allegiance With Microsoft

rsmiller510 writes "A BusinessWeek report suggests that the Nexus One release marks the latest volley in an escalating war between Google and Apple, one that could force Apple into working more closely with Microsoft. 'When companies start to imitate one another, it's usually either an extreme case of flattery—or war. In the case of Google and Apple, it's both. Separated by a mere 10 miles in Silicon Valley, the two have been on famously good terms for almost a decade. ... Now the companies have entered a new, more adversarial phase. With Nexus One, Google, which had been content to power multiple phonemakers' devices with Android, enters the hardware game, becoming a direct threat to the iPhone. With its Quattro purchase, Apple aims to create completely new kinds of mobile ads, say three sources familiar with Apple's thinking. The goal isn't so much to compete with Google in search as to make search on mobile phones obsolete. ... Some analysts believe the Apple-Google battle is likely to get much rougher in the months ahead. Ovum's Yarmis thinks Apple may soon decide to dump Google as the default search engine on its devices, primarily to cut Google off from mobile data that could be used to improve its advertising and Android technology. Jobs might cut a deal with—gasp!—Microsoft to make Bing Apple's engine of choice, or even launch its own search engine, Yarmis says."

Comments

Won't have to wait for Hadron collider ...

[ctmurray]

If this happens we won't have to wait for the Hadron collider to end the universe...

Re:thank goodness it is real competition and not

[Locutus]

mostly talking about the OS for the mobile phone market. Although I know way too many who still won't spend $300-$600 for phone even though they end up paying more over the 2 year contract, I'm hopeful that many see what Google is doing with the Nexus One is a way out of that lockin. Opening up that lockin, or should I say lock-out, might also open up the market to other providers since they won't require huge profits to get customers via new phone lockin deals.

One step at a time.

LoB