What will Google gain from an online tablet store?

30.03.2012
Will an online store selling Android tablets help Google compete against the market-leading iPad and the less-expensive Kindle Fire?

A few analysts are divided on the value of the move, which was by the Wall Street Journal, saying an online store wouldn't help cut significantly into the 65% market share that 's holds.

But what if Google's online strategy isn't to go after the 9.7-in. iPad, with a starting price of $499 for the newest version? What if the intended target is lower-priced tablets, like the next-generation 7-in. Kindle Fire, which is expected to sell for $200 to $300?

this week that Google will work with Asustek to launch a cheaper 7-in. tablet in May or June. A Google tablet sold in an online store would likely run the , called Jelly Bean, a PC World columnist said. Google is also in the final stages of acquiring Motorola Mobility, once , which would make it easier to co-brand a Google tablet for sale in an online store, some analysts have said.

Amazon sold 4 million Kindle Fire tablets at $199 each in December alone, making it the on the market behind the iPad, according to analysts. (Amazon typically doesn't disclose unit sales figures. ) By contrast, iPad sold more than 13 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Google wouldn't comment on the DigiTimes or Wall Street Journal reports on its online tablet sales or its partnership with with Asus.