Google keen on more Jio-like partnerships in India, says India engineering lead for Android

Internet major Google said that it is looking to form more Jio-like partnerships in India to solve customer requirements in the country. It is looking at partnerships with handset makers, telecom operators and developers.

“We will be expecting more partnerships like the one with Jio hopefully as we find more gaps in our portfolio in the market. What we are trying to figure out is to solve market needs by ourselves at Google or can we have the power of compounding by working with a local partner. That’s a framework we are approaching,” said Ram Papatla, GM & Engineering Lead (India), Android.

Papatla said that the evaluation criteria for partnerships is mostly based on problems that Google wants to solve for India. The framework for the JioPhone has been primarily about bridging the affordability gap and making benefits a little bit simpler besides coupling it with the power of network and services of Reliance Jio to make the offering “interesting.”

“We also work with Jio very closely to make sure we are collectively going out to the same benefits for all users. We also have to meet there culturally. Once we have met there then it makes sense to go further. So, we look at those opportunities in every possibility over the next few months and hopefully we will have more announcements,” he said.

Google and Reliance Jio have co-developed an affordable smartphone, the JioPhone Next, which is powered by Android-based Pragati OS.

Pragati OS is an extension to Google’s Android operating system that features new optimisations specific to the JioPhone Next smartphone, Papatla said.

“We basically optimised Android so it appeals to users…as with any optimisations we do, we need to first get a cheap product market fit and need to achieve the scale and need to make sure we are confident. We also want to make sure we don’t create confusion in both the OEM and developer ecosystem. The focus on Pragati OS is to make it interesting for India,” he said.

The executive said that Google has made a very larger commitment through the India development fund as its signal that it is open to investing in partnerships where it makes sense

“We will continue to evaluate over the next few months and years all kinds of use cases where we can compoing with partnerships,” Papatla added.

For the Pragati OS, Google has adopted a different approach as compared to its Android One program wherein it partnered with various device markers in India and in other markets.

“With Jio, we went with a different approach as compared to Android One even though the program was an inspiration and those lesions are being used and that’s been very beneficial,” Papatla said, adding that the Jio partnership started with more user focus.

“It is more about the collective value proposition, optimisations beyond making sure that the OS is fresh and has clean experience,” he added.

The smartphone was launched just before Diwali with the aim of helping Reliance Jio target a bulk of India’s over 300 million feature phone users. The device is priced at Rs 6,499, but can also be bought for an upfront payment of Rs 1,999 and a processing fee of Rs500, with the rest to be paid in monthly instalments of over 18 or 24 months.

“One of the most important drivers for affordability is financing options. We have seen various schemes in India that are creative. We can learn a lot from what Jio has done in terms of financial options. This is an area where Google can take a lead but it is too early in the space…,” he added.