According to a report today, Google has changed their attitude towards native applications for smartphone devices, deciding to hire a number of new employees to boost their efforts in creating new apps.
The news comes as somewhat of a surprise from the search giant after their recent push towards creating mobile website applications as opposed to native applications, thanks largely to the ability to target many devices at once as opposed to making separate apps for each platform -- including Apple"s iOS, Google"s own Android and Microsoft"s Windows Phone 7 -- making development more economical and practical.
“The web is powerful,” Google Ventures partner Wesley Chan said at the DEMO conference last year. “Google has brought that out on the PC. Why can’t we do that on the mobile phone?”
The search giant does currently offer a small number of free applications for most smartphone platforms, but according to today"s report these numbers will be boosted as part of the new initiative.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said today that Google has decided to change their approach towards native applications, and has begun hiring a number of new developers, product managers, user interface experts and "others" to assist in the creation of a number of new apps. Existing employees within the company have also moved around to assist the effort the WSJ believes.
It"s understood a number of the new apps to come out of Google will be available only to those using the company"s open source mobile operating system, Android, as part of a push to increase both quality and quantity of the apps available on Google"s Android Market, which rivals app stores such as Apple"s App Store and the up-and-coming Microsoft Marketplace.
Employees will be placed around the world, and will be encouraged to develop their own ideas in a bid to get products out faster. The company is expected to make the apps available for free when completed, and make money through in-app advertising. Google declined to comment on the matter.