Two primary anti-Apple techniques have worked to make Google the big player in the mobility market; open platform and free software. Using the two main principles from what is called “Open Source,” Google has once again proven that free is the most profitable business model of all, and you don\’t even need a winner to win the game.

Google has attempted to move into the hardware end of the mobile market several times, all with mixed results. Nevertheless, the market hype surrounding the launch of the Nexus One, Google\’s first branded smartphone, it’s hard to imagine that other handset makers were inspired to go Android by the hype-and everyone thought hype was the exclusive property of Apple.

Proven Platform Viability

Once Android was proven a viable platform for the smartphone market, Google let its own hardware platform fade, and the others exploded on the market place. Does anyone really believe that Google simply “got lucky?” Apple has always refused to share the fun and kept both the technology and the marketplace for Apple products a closed platform. Google makes its money with free everything and by leveraging that weight and the clever move of Nexus One, Android is the new standard for smartphones and tablet PCs.

On the Application end of the market, Google gives it to the developing community as well. Apple’s recent announcement of its 10 billionth app download comes on the heels of the announcement that Android devices are activating 300,000 times per day. Android App developers have a free, wide-open path to that huge market; Apple, not so much. This means that a greater number of developers, competition, and growth-in short massive marketplace vigor, which also allows for a greater number of Android apps to continue to be offered free, further encouraging distribution and growth.

The Competition & Fight for Dominance

Why should Google fight to succeed in the mobile hardware marketplace when there are so many excellent handset manufacturers just lining up to get Android? Well, it has something to do with the fact that not only is Android free-and any company using it can freely customize it-but the companies get paid to install it as well Maybe that’s where the 300,000 activations per day come from?

Could Apple have mimicked Google\’s strategy and win the game? No. For decades, Apple has followed the closed, market exclusivity that shaped Mac and the Apple OS. They couldn\’t just turn 180 degrees at the last minute. The greatest weapons against Apple in the mobility marketplace are two words; free and open. Apple is not dead yet and the company does have a sizable customer base, which will continue to be a part of the landscape.

However, for every iPad or iPhone that goes online, many times that number of Android devices will activate. Ultimately, the new mobility ecosystem of applications, cloud-computing assets, and consumer applications will favor Google by sheer volume. Much of this will come from the Global Android market place where price is a major issue for both consumers and developers. The future mobility marketplace will be Android and Google\’s.

Author Bio: Bob T. Wilson is the technology writer at velocity guide, a site dedicated to keeping its readers informed of the constant advances in mobile computing technology and Internet Service.

Category: Computers and Technology
Keywords: Mobile Computing,iPhone,Internet,Mobile Broadband,Smart Phones, Broadband Internet,Google