One of the highlights of Google’s first quarter earnings call today was the revelation about the amazing growth Android has seen over the past few months.
Jeff Huber, Google’s senior vice president of engineering said Android was now powering no less than 34 devices, from 12 different OEM’s, which is up by a whopping 70% quarter over quarter.
Another staggering statistic is that over 60,000 Android devices are sold and activated every single day, which works out at just under 22 million Android devices per year at the current rate of growth.
“Our whole mantra with Android is ‘open’,” said Huber, explaining, “the Android OS itself is open for partners to modify and extend on their own, which to us is a noble goal that is sure to see Android’s growth continue at an exponential rate for the foreseeable future.”
Next Huber discussed the openness of the Android Market, noting “the Android market for apps is open for all developers which is driving a lot of growth and great apps.” Surely a dig at Apple and its notoriously closed App Store.
The Android Market, said Huber, now stands at over 38,000 apps which, like the Android devices themselves, is up an astonishing 70% quarter over quarter.
“The net effect is to make web-ready smartphones more widely available. It is helping drive a lot of mobile search and apps usage,” concluded Huber.
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Chris Stobie is a freelance contributor to RCR Unplugged, residing in Sydney, Australia. You can read more from Chris on the tech blog CtrlRefresh
