Apple and app streaming: Unlikely, but never say never
Apple is unlikely to follow Google into app streaming unless the model gains significant traction with consumers, forcing its hand, analysts said today.
"It's clear why Google is doing this," said Jan Dawson, principal analyst at Jackdaw Research, in an interview. "One reason why it's investing so heavily in app indexing, and now streaming, is that it reasserts the dominance of the Web and search. But that doesn't apply to Apple. Having said that, when someone goes first, then Apple may follow suit. And Apple's not against being later to market rather than first."
Dawson was referring to Google's announcement last week of streaming a small number of apps from search results pages. When users search using the Google app on recent editions of Android, they may see links to content available only in mobile apps like those from Hotel Tonight, The Weather Channel and Chimani. If the app is not already installed on the device, users can stream the app -- Google runs the app in a virtualized environment on its servers, pushing the results to users with a strong Wi-Fi connection -- to get the content in the app's user interface (UI).
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