Android - a Disruptive Technology

Executive Summary

Smart Phone technologies are fast emerging and rapidly progressing and there is a strong application push behind them .Smart phone are devices that are versatile and provide flexibility to its user. The success of smart phone largely depends on the experience it provides to its user. The freedom of choice in services even after purchasing the device is a requirement for its user. Mobile handset functions are becoming more diversified and advanced; therefore the need of high performance operating system is increasing.

GOOG phone will be launched in the market with many expectations. It has wide range of usage possibilities which will cater to the wide range of customer needs. Like every other product GOOG phone is expected to be prone to the unpredictable market forces which will decide its future in the market. Based on the research done, the report highlights the challenges GOOG phone is likely to come across and the Technology Roadmap which basically describes the recommended strategic solutions along with expected outcome. The main intent of this report is to enlighten the potential opportunities for growth for GOOG phone and recommend solutions to sustain its growth.

This report covers the research and analysis along the following lines:

• Google Android, G1 – Review of the Past

o Business objective

o Past strategy – Success and failure factors

• GOOG phone – Vision, Mission, Strategic Objectives

• Business/Technological/Environmental Drivers

• Potential challenges faced and opportunities for growth

• Technology Roadmap

• Market launch strategies

Google Android, G1 – Review of the Past

Android is a software platform and operating system for the mobile devices, based on the Linux kernel, and developed by Google and later the Open Handset Alliance. It allows the developers to write managed code in the Java language, controlling the device via Google-developed Java libraries. Google, unveiled the Android platform on 5 November 2007 with the founding of the Open Handset Alliance, a consortium of 48 hardware, software, and telecom companies devoted to advancing open standards for mobile devices.

Spending over four years and at least 150 million dollars, Google has created a complete mobile OS and application stack with very advanced capabilities. Under a permissive open source license, it lets carriers, device manufacturers and system integrators use it, sell it, and modify it in any way. Google's business model is almost entirely based on advertising. Almost everything Google does is designed to place ads on as many pages and screens as possible. Google accomplishes this by offering compelling ad-supported products like Gmail, Google Docs and with search. Android extends Google advertising and tracking to the mobile in a way that goes far beyond current Google mobile products like Search and Maps. It's no secret that mobile search isn't very easy to use or powerful. Android is intended to change that by combining speech recognition and synthesis (for faster, easier input and output) with personal data from the handset (location, contact names and addresses, calendar and to-do entries) and data known to Google (maps, web index, and the user's search and purchase history) to deliver a revolutionary user experience.

The HTC Dream (also marketed as T-Mobile G1, Era G1 in Poland) is the first phone to the market that uses the Android platform. First Google Android based smart phone ‘G-1' made by HTC was released by T-Mobile in Q4 of 2008 and the main targeted customers were Smartphone possessors (early adopters).

Google is acquiring a new Core Product which is the OS development in mobile phones. Android as an end product will be a new way for Google to broadcast all its other end products. It believes that a qualitative and quantitative pool of applications has a great impact on Android popularity. To gather huge community, Google planned to conduct a dramatic competition with incentive rewards; $10 million for the top 50 Android applications. The main handset makers partners namely LG, Motorola, HTC and Samsung although shared less than 30% market share, they are more popular in Asia.

Some of the main success factors of the past strategy include- the appeal and support from innovator users, OHA (Open Handset Alliance – strategic alliance built and lead by Google), interest of new handset makes like NEC, HTC and carriers