
Google's Next Opportunity Could Spell Serious Competition for Facebook on Mobile - yugene_lee
http://madmorkonmobile.blogspot.com/2014/07/google-next-opportunity-could-spell.html
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walterbell
Isn't Google already selling mobile ads that rely on app store analytics,
[http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/22/google-to-offer-mobile-
app-...](http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/22/google-to-offer-mobile-app-install-
ads-in-search-and-youtube-expands-app-deep-linking-to-adwords/) ? What's the
difference in this proposal - bidding for placement within store categories?

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w1ntermute
Another big difference is that those mobile ads are only in the Search and
YouTube apps, and not in the Play Store app itself (although the ads link
directly to the Play Store). From a usability standpoint, putting app ads
directly in the Play Store is a terrible idea. I can see users easily getting
confused about whether a listing is part of the Store proper, or an ad in the
Store. That's probably a big reason this hasn't happened.

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chatmasta
Then again, that was an argument made against Adwords when it first debuted.
But that worked out pretty well for a Google (admittedly, it's debatable
whether users are entirely clear on what's a sponsored result and what's not).

Here's a related question: what's stopping Facebook, or any company for that
matter, from making its own App Store? It could list both Android and iOS
apps, and simply link to each app's original listing in its native App Store.
The problem, of course, is that if this was in the form of an app it could not
be part of the iTunes App Store.

But the search experience in both major app stores is sorely lacking, and if
some other big company with reach wants to improve on that -- desktop or
otherwise -- it would be a welcome improvement.

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walterbell
Would the business model be advertising? There's a bunch of app review sites
which seem to rely on affiliate revenue from iTunes.

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adventured
His business argument concludes with this: "then we're talking a high margin
ads business worth an additional $1.5B a year in revenue."

So we're talking about the app store (Google Play Store), which is an
extraordinarily important centerpiece to Google's hold on Android and mobile.
The risk: you mess up the app store, and torpedo Android; the benefit: you
gain 2% in revenue, maybe 6% in new profit.

Google isn't getting out of bed for $1.5 billion in new revenue, and they sure
as heck aren't putting Android at risk in any regard for such a small sum. In
two years they'll be as large as Microsoft, sporting north of $80 billion in
sales. $1.5 billion is now a rounding error.

You'd have to say this concept was a $10 or $20 billion opportunity. Otherwise
Google will never consider it.

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slouch
I've never went app exploring on my phone, tablet or any PC I've ever owned
the way articles this week are suggesting is so broken. I've always started
with a) a service I already use, b) a problem I need to solve or c) a
recommendation from someone/thing I trust. App discovery is not something I
need my device or service provider to "solve" for me.

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mik3y
Discovery happens less and less in the App Store proper, and more elsewhere
(search, in-app ads, etc).

This is not to say the article is very wrong -- only that the placements
Google can sell will be, for the most part, outside of the Play app.

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fishnchips
That would likely spell the end of indie app development as well.

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netcan
Why? There would still be "organic" discovery just like there is organic
website discovery on search.

Also, an adwords-like model is relatively friendly to small budgets. A cost
per install (or effectively cost per instal) model favors apps that have a
high value per user, which aren't necessarily the bigger companies.

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fishnchips
I believe this model necessitates a substantial up-front investment which
indie developers may not be comfortable with. Also, unlike AdWords ads which
are shown side-by-side with 'free/organic' search results (which may still be
'bought' from an SEO company), those auctions would totally supplant the
current discovery model. That's at least the impression I'm getting from the
article.

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blumkvist
very relevant

[http://priceonomics.com/when-yahoo-reigned-
supreme/](http://priceonomics.com/when-yahoo-reigned-supreme/)

