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Schmidt: Android will conquer Asia, you’ll see Google protect HTC from Apple


Google’s Eric Schmidt chats with the Wall Street Journal columnist Walt Mossberg at D9 conference in May 2011. Photo: Asa Mathat | All Things Digital

Interesting comments by Google’s executive chairman and former CEO Eric Schmidt at Google’s Mobile Revolution conference here Tuesday. 9to5Mac, our parent site, already reported how Schmidt bashed Apple for suing Android backers out of – in his view – pure jealousy at Android’s success and what he called “lack of innovation” on Apple’s part. However, Schmidt is “not too worried” about Apple’s patent infringement claim against HTC, but stressed his company will “make sure they don’t lose”ZDNet follows-up with more noteworthy tidbits concerning Android and Google’s view of the mobile landscape.

Asia will be the next gold mine as Android devices become more affordable to the mass consumer, he said, countering claims by DigiTimes that an ITC ruling favoring Apple in its crusade against HTC had white-box vendors such as Huawei Device and ZTE, two of China’s fastest growing Android-device makers, reconsider Microsoft’s mobile operating system at the expense of Android. Asia is the world’s largest and most populous continent with the population of 3.88 billion people.

Within a decade consumers will enjoy 30 times “cheaper, better, faster” connection speeds on mobile devices. Google’s mobile first approach will prove key:

Describing the present as exciting times for mobile technology and the industry in general, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt said all the most innovative ideas and software will “go to mobile first”. This is allowing more users to adopt mobile devices and get connected online, said Schmidt.

Schmidt sees a whopping three billion mobile devices activated this year, but Android will have to works its way below the current $200 price point in order to become a mass market phenomenon it’s been in the Western world:

Every month, China and India are adding 10 million mobile subscribers and we expect to see amazing growth in markets with lower penetration rates such as Indonesia and the Philippines.

A $50 Android phone, he said, will introduce the platform to up to six billion people who otherwise couldn’t afford an Android handset.

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