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PhonePe announces Indus Appstore for Android developers to take on Google

PhonePe on Saturday announced the launch of Indus Appstore developer platform, wooing Android app developers with the promise of zero platform fee or commission for in-app payments, as the digital payments firm made a bold and decisive move to confront the might of Google in the app marketplace with the Made-in-India app store. Akash Dongre, Co-Founder of Indus Appstore rued that app developers are forced to work with only one app store - Google Play Store - for distributing their apps, and vowed that the new offering will be a credible alternative, more localised, with better app discovery and consumer engagement. The Indus Appstore Developer platform comes with sweeteners - app listings on it will be free for the first year, after which a nominal annual fee will apply. Moreover, the Indus Appstore will not charge developers any platform fee or commission for In-App Payments. Developers will be free to integrate any payment gateway of their choice inside their own apps. These apps

Google sued for negligence after man drives off collapsed bridge due to map

The family of a North Carolina man who died after driving his car off a collapsed bridge while following Google Maps directions is suing the technology giant for negligence, claiming it had been informed of the collapse but failed to update its navigation system. Philip Paxson, a medical device salesman and father of two, drowned September 30, 2022, after his Jeep Gladiator plunged into Snow Creek in Hickory, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Wake County Superior Court. Paxson was driving home from his daughter's ninth birthday party through an unfamiliar neighbourhood when Google Maps allegedly directed him to cross a bridge that had collapsed nine years prior and was never repaired. "Our girls ask how and why their daddy died, and I'm at a loss for words they can understand because, as an adult, I still can't understand how those responsible for the GPS directions and the bridge could have acted with so little regard for human life," his wife, Alicia Paxson, said. State ...

Decoded: All that Google's Bard Extensions does and guide on how to use it

With Extensions, Bard can help you multitask without the need to open multiple windows and apps

Google lost map traffic with Apple maps switch on iPhones: Executive

Google's largest contract is with Apple, which set Google as the default on Safari in exchange for a share of the revenue that the search engine earns through advertising

Google's 'smart' move: Connects Bard chatbot with its popular apps

The new features allow users to use Bard as a one-stop solution for purposes like double-checking its responses and summarising emails

Google tweaks ad auctions to hit revenue targets, as much as 5%: Exec

company frequently makes changes to the auctions it uses to sell search ads - the text and shopping promotions that appear at the top of a results page, said Jerry Dischler, VP for Google ad products

Google in last ditch effort to overturn $2.6 billion EU antitrust fine

Google turned to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) after the General Court in 2021 threw out its challenge to the fine levied by EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager in 2017

Google brings its AI chatbot Bard into Gmail, YouTube to tackle Microsoft

Google is introducing Bard, its artificially intelligent chatbot, to other members of its digital family including Gmail, Maps and YouTube as it seeks ward off competitive threats posed by similar technology run by Open AI and Microsoft. Bard's expanded capabilities announced Tuesday will be provided through an English-only extension that will enable users to allow the chatbot to mine information embedded in their Gmail accounts as well as pull directions from Google Maps and find helpful videos on YouTube. The extension will also open a door for Bard to fetch travel information from Google Flights and extract information from documents stored on Google Drive. Google is promising to protect users' privacy by prohibiting human reviewers from seeing the potentially sensitive information that Bard gets from Gmail or Drive, while also promising that the data won't used as part of the main way the Mountain View, California, company makes money selling ads tailored to people's ...

Verizon executive testifies Google search always pre-installed on phones

Brian Higgins, a 28-year Verizon veteran who was on a team from 2017 to 2023 that struck deals with Google to pick software to preload onto the carrier's phones, testified in a federal court

Best of BS Opinion: Investment for growth, a search for fairness, and more

Here is the best of Business Standard's opinion pieces for today

Algo rhythm: Digital spells money for India's BFSI companies, says report

The cost of acquiring customers through digital channels is 70 per cent cheaper, says the Google and McKinsey report

A search for fairness

Google case will be vital for competition laws

Google's Sundar Pichai joins CEOs in White House meeting on immigration

President Joe Biden's administration has requested $600 million from Congress for housing, and said it will work with cities to facilitate work permits for eligible asylum seekers

California settles with Google over location privacy practices for $93 mn

Search giant Google has agreed to a USD 93 million settlement with the state of California on Thursday over the its location-privacy practices. The settlement follows a USD 391.5 million settlement with 40 states, reached in November 2022, to resolve an investigation into how the company tracked users' locations. The states' investigation was sparked by a 2018 Associated Press story, which found that Google continued to track people's location data even after they opted out of such tracking by disabling a feature the company called location history. Our investigation revealed that Google was telling its users one thing that it would no longer track their location once they opted out but doing the opposite and continuing to track its users' movements for its own commercial gain. That's unacceptable, and we're holding Google accountable with today's settlement, said Attorney General Rob Bonta in a statement. Representatives for Google parent company Alphabet Inc. did not immediatel

Google's search defaults prey on power of habit: Expert in antitrust trial

"Search engine defaults generate a sizable and robust bias towards the default," Rangel said. "Defaults have a powerful impact on consumer decisions"

Google parent Alphabet fires hundreds from global recruitment team

Firm cut about 12,000 jobs in January, reducing workforce by 6%

DoJ pushes ahead with antitrust case against Google, questions ex-employee

The US Justice Department pressed ahead with its antitrust case against Google on Wednesday, questioning a former employee of the search engine giant about deals he helped negotiate with phone companies in the 2000s. Chris Barton, who worked for Google from 2004 to 2011, testified that he made it a priority to negotiate for Google to be the default search engine on mobile devices. In exchange, phone service providers or manufacturers were offered a share of revenue generated when users clicked on ads. In the biggest antitrust case in a quarter century, the government is arguing that Google has rigged the market in its favour by locking in its search engine as the one users see first on their devices, shutting out competition and smothering innovation. Google counters that it dominates the internet search market because its product is better than the competition. Even when it holds the default spot on smartphones and other devices, it argues, users can switch to rival search engines

Google anti-trust trial spotlights internal dispute over algorithm vs data

And now it's a key feature in a landmark antitrust trial, where the US Justice Department claims Google spends billions of dollars to stifle competition and preserve its monopoly over online search

AI, digital solutions integration to bolster BFSI: Google McKinsey report

The integration of AI with digital solutions is set to enable India's BFSI sector to unlock access to its entire spectrum of products for over 700 million internet users in the country, according to a Google and McKinsey report. Around 87 per cent of financial services seekers commence their consumer journey online, the report said, adding that nearly two-thirds find online channels more helpful for making a purchase decision over traditional channels. Approximately 40 per cent use search and about 31 per cent use online videos to help them with their decisions. The report combines analysis of Google Search trends, revealing that online demand exceeded total purchases across all product categories by 3-5 times in 2022. Credit cards, home loans and car loans were amongst the most searched products, enjoying amongst the highest growth rates in online demand, with searches focused on factors like innovative features and prices, the report, titled 'AI revolutionizes inclusion and ...

Google exploited exclusive search engine deals to maintain advantage: DoJ

Google has exploited its dominance of the internet search market to lock out competitors and smother innovation, the Department of Justice said on Tuesday at the opening of the biggest US antitrust trial in a quarter century. This case is about the future of the internet and whether Google's search engine will ever face meaningful competition, said Kenneth Dintzer, the Justice Department's lead litigator. Over the next 10 weeks, federal lawyers and state attorneys general will try to prove Google rigged the market in its favour by locking in its search engine as the default choice in a plethora of places and devices. US District Judge Amit Mehta likely won't issue a ruling until early next year. If he decides Google broke the law, another trial will decide what steps should be taken to rein in the Mountain View, California-based company. Top executives at Google and its corporate parent Alphabet Inc., as well as those from other powerful technology companies are expected to testify