Google Soups Feature Phones with $22 Million
Google has invested $22 million in a company that makes operating system (KaiOS) for feature phones. This OS helps to pack a range of native apps and other smartphone-like services in these cheap phones. According to Techcrunch, in India, these phones have overtaken iOS and are now the second-most popular devices after Android handsets. Simply, while everyone is looking for that smartphone era, feature phones are not going away anytime soon. Google is souping that with $22 million.
Our mobile world is dominated today by smartphones: there were about 1.6 billion of them sold last year. But feature phones have continued to move, too: it’s estimated that there were about 450 million-500 million of them shipped in 2017. And their sales are actually growing faster right now than their souped-up cousins.
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As part of the investment, KaiOS will be working on integrating Google services like search, maps, YouTube and its voice assistant into more KaiOS devices, after initially announcing Google apps for KaiOS-powered Nokia phones earlier this year.
“This funding will help us fast-track development and global deployment of KaiOS-enabled smart feature phones, allowing us to connect the vast population that still cannot access the internet, especially in emerging markets,” said KaiOS CEO Sebastien Codeville in a statement.
Very fascinating as Google wants to make sure even feature phones could have access to its products like maps, search and more. That is why it is investing directing instead of waiting for its investment arms like GV and CapitalG.
Google’s investment in KaiOS is the latest in a line of direct startup deals from the U.S. tech giant that sit alongside investments made by GV and CapitalG, its two investment arms. Google has also backed concierge service Dunzo and is partnering with the carrier Orange to make investments and potentially acquire startups in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Google isn't taking chances, anything that somewhat guarantees market relevance/domance, whether forward or backward integration is a good investment.
Ofcourse there are categories of people who have decided that smartphones aren't for them, so Google is now looking at 'souping' them as well.
For the tech giants, some investments aren't directly linked to profit making, some are just for other intrinsic value, and perhaps data harvesting for future rollouts of grand products that could be all encompassing, perhaps.