Tech Tok: Google makes sweeping changes after SC order

CCI ruled that Google is exploiting its dominant position in Android and directed the search engine to remove restrictions on device makers, in addition to levying a $161 million fine

Hyderabad: Google is making some significant changes to its Android and Play policies in India after it lost a challenge in the apex court to block the directives laid out by the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

In October, CCI ruled that Google is exploiting its dominant position in Android and directed the search engine to remove restrictions on device makers, in addition to levying a $161 million fine.

Google’s parent company Alphabet Inc challenged the antitrust directive in the Supreme Court of India which was upheld recently. Now making the changes, Google posted a blog on Wednesday where it detailed the steps it was taking.

Under its latest policy changes, device makers will be able to license their apps for pre-installation on devices and Indian users will be able to select their preferred search engine when setting up a new Android device. Both moves will somewhat reduce the tech giant’s android monopoly.

In another key update, Google said that its users will have alternative billing options for both apps and games by this month-end.

“Implementation of these changes across the ecosystem will be a complex process and will require significant work at our end and, in many cases, significant efforts from our partners, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and developers,” wrote Google.

The CCI directive has been a concern for Google as the directives were more stringent than the European Commission’s 2018 ruling against Android. The company, however, said that it plans to appeal sections of the directive.

Sony NW-ZX707 Walkman launched

Sony launched its latest portable hi-fi audio player Sony NW-ZX707 Walkman in India on Monday. The device is priced at Rs 69,990 and will be sold via Headphone Zone.

The walkman runs on Android tech and has a five-inch display with features like Edge-AI, Digital Sound Enhancement Engine, and multiple sound effects with a 10-band equaliser.

Sony claims that the Walkman offers up to 25 hours of battery backup while listening to 44.1 kHz FLAC audio and has 64GB of inbuilt storage.

Chinese search engine to launch ChatGPT-like AI service

Following the footsteps of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Chinese search engine Baidu Inc. will be rolling out a similar interactive chatbot, according to reports.

The service is expected to debut in March this year and will initially be available as a part of its existing search engine. However, the name of the service has not been decided yet.

Baidu has been active in the AI domain and has spent billions of dollars researching AI. It has a large-scale machine-learning model Ernie system that has been trained on data over several years and is expected to play a vital role in the upcoming ChatGPT-like tool.

Gear up for Coca-Cola smartphone

Smartphone manufacturer Realme is set to launch a brand-new device in collaboration with Coca-Cola. The phone is tipped to possibly be a rebranded Realme 10 4G.

In a tweet, the company teased the launch and wrote, “Something is fizzing at #realme. Watch this space for more.” This came days after tipster Mukul Sharma shared an image of the said phone on Twitter.