We know Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has a penchant for saying the darndest things. Just back in November, he stated:
“I don’t really understand their strategy. Maybe somebody else does. If I went to my shareholder meeting, my analyst meeting, and said: ‘Hey, we’ve just launched a new product that has no revenue model!’… I’m not sure that my investors would take that very well. But that’s kind of what Google’s telling their investors about Android,”
And since at the time Google didn’t defend itself, we said:
Though he is technically right and that Google doesn’t make money on Android alone, he seems to be missing the point. Android serves as an extension of Google’s services which all point back to search which all point back to ad revenue which all lead to money. Google’s logic? If more people use Android, more people use Google, and more money for us. So we’ll give Android away, heck, they’ll let anyone use and tinker with it. Makes sense here.
And after waiting a good 3 months for Google to defend itself on its business model for Android stating:
“As the internet grows, so does Google benefit from potential growth,” he continued. “I think our business model has proven that it works well so far.”
So I guess Google agrees with us: any way to improve the Internet experience, be it on a mobile device or a PC will somehow trickle down and help Google’s bottom line. We think that’s as good a strategy as any. What do you guys think?
[ZDNet via modmyGphone]