Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Applications
    • Applications
    • Cloud
    • Development
    • IT Management

    Chrome Web Store Applies iPhone, Android App Store Model to Web Apps

    By
    Clint Boulton
    -
    May 21, 2010
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      Little is known yet about Google’s Chrome Web Store, but the move takes a page straight out of the playbook of today’s successful mobile application stores, including Apple’s iPhone App Store and Google’s own Android Market.

      Unveiled May 19 at Google I/O, Chrome Web Store is an application gallery meant to make it easier for users to browse and download thousands of free and paid Web apps.

      The store will enable the roughly 70 million users of the Google Chrome Web browser to not only find Web apps, but create shortcuts in the Google Chrome Web browser to access them easier.

      “Discovery of available apps is a problem for the average consumer,” IDC analyst Al Hilwa told eWEEK May 20. “I am surprised there still no app store for Windows PCs.”

      Hilwa added the concept of an app store has proven to be a boon for the discovery of solutions on any particular platform and is a concept that deserves to be emulated, so “I can hardly blame Google for using it.”

      Google anticipates many free apps for the Web Store, which, similar to a mobile apps store, boasts ratings and reviews.

      Developers who submit apps for sale in the Web Store will receive 70 percent of the revenues, with the remainder going to Google. This matches the model for the Android Market. App prices will average $2.99 to $3.99, which is in the ballpark of the Android Market.

      Moreover, the applications for Chrome Web Store Sundar Pichai, the director of product management for Google, demoed on stage at Google I/O were the kind of gaming applications people are used to playing on their iPhone and Android smartphones. MugTug’s Dark Room, for example, is popular on the iPhone.

      With so many similarities to the Android Market, which in turn borrowed some of the notions of Apple’s App Store, it’s hard not to see the parallels between Chrome Web Store and today’s mobile app stores.

      “I think they’re starting to head in that direction, but there are other aspects to the App Store,” Gartner analyst Ray Valdes told eWEEK May 20.

      “The Apple App Store is a familiar interface, people have been using it with iPods. They’re used to buying stuff off of it and they have 100 million credit cards on file. These are things that are hard for anyone to replicate, though Google certainly has a leg up on it over some others. But it’s got a long ways to go to be a complete challenger.”

      Forrester Research analyst Jeffrey Hammond said Chrome Web Store could work given the success of the App Store and Steam, which sells games online.

      One of the interesting twists, Hammond noted, was that Google is allowing different Web technologies for the apps created for the store. He added:

      “Google will take a technology neutral approach the to the apps that are submitted. They can be HTML 5, or Flash, or anything that will run in the Chrome browser, or perhaps in other browsers as well. The Chrome apps store appears to be less about control and more about connection – and to some developers that will make all the difference in the world.”

      Pichai said Chrome Web Store will initially launch with support for Chrome and Chrome Operating System only, adding that Google will discuss the ins and outs for the Web Store later this year.

      Until Google decides to discuss the Web Store more, there will be many unanswered questions, including how Chrome Web Store will work with Chrome OS, the underlying operating system on top of which the Chrome browser will sit.

      Clint Boulton
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.
      Get the Free Newsletter!
      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
      This email address is invalid.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Applications

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      IT Management

      Intuit’s Nhung Ho on AI for the...

      James Maguire - May 13, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nhung Ho, Vice President of AI at Intuit, about adoption of AI in the small and medium-sized business market, and how...
      Read more
      Applications

      Kyndryl’s Nicolas Sekkaki on Handling AI and...

      James Maguire - November 9, 2022 0
      I spoke with Nicolas Sekkaki, Group Practice Leader for Applications, Data and AI at Kyndryl, about how companies can boost both their AI and...
      Read more
      Cloud

      IGEL CEO Jed Ayres on Edge and...

      James Maguire - June 14, 2022 0
      I spoke with Jed Ayres, CEO of IGEL, about the endpoint sector, and an open source OS for the cloud; we also spoke about...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×