China’s technology ministry has published a document in which it says Google’s Android operating system has too much control over the Chinese market. Could this be an indication the government plans to impose extra regulations on the OS?
The white paper, which was publicized by local media on Tuesday, said that China’s “core technology roadmap is strictly controlled by Google.” As noted by Reuters, it accuses the industry of being “too dependent on Android.”
The document goes on to suggest that Google has discriminated against some Chinese handset makers by being slow to share open-source code for the Android platform. Google has been accused of using commercial agreements to block the business development of mobile devices from Chinese manufacturers.
The Chinese government is never reluctant to regulate where it can to help domestic firms. The white paper could be an indication the government will step in to assist the local companies it feels Google has discriminated against.
The paper had nothing but praise for local companies including Huawei, Baidu, and Alibaba, which have released their own mobile operating systems.
