Google is Now Streaming Apps and it’s Great for Mobile

The revolution will not be televised. It will be, duh, streamed. For video we have Netflix and YouTube. For music, Pandora and Spotify. For video games, Twitch and YouTube again. And now we have Google, streaming mobile apps.

Google and/or Alphabet announced this week it has started an experiment to allow users to stream Android apps they haven’t installed. The grand experiment only features nine info-based apps so far: Chimani, Daily Horoscope, Gormey, Hotel Tonight, My Horoscope, New York Subway, Useful Knots, Visual Anatomy Free, and Weather.

Let’s say you want to take the yacht out and need to brush up on your anchor knot. Naturally, you google it. Assuming you have an updated Android phone, Google will display search results from the web, and now, for the first time, results from your favorite knot application, Useful Knots. Being an intrepid yachtsman with a love for apps, you dive right into Useful Knots, which Google runs virtually. No installation. No app store. Voila.

This is, obviously, huge news for our San Francisco app developers. This app streaming removes several barriers of entry, most importantly app discovery and app installation. And for your trusty user, no need to delete any more Jonas Brothers songs to make room for your favorite horoscopes. Because no one should be forced to choose between Nick Jonas and their horoscope.

Couple important things to note. First, only the nine aforementioned apps. Second, those apps need to use Google’s app indexing API, opening the door for Google to look inside. Third, the user device must have a solid WiFi connection. Finally, only the latest versions of Android Lollipop and Marshmallow, and not on iOS… yet.

For Google, it’s a smart move. Big websites previously migrated from the web to mobile, sites like Facebook and Twitter. Now, apps are starting on mobile first and then, maybe, migrating to the web later. This mobile-first mentality keeps Google Search (and its advertising) relevant.

Google says app streaming is an experiment for now, but our guess here at Appstem is that we’ll be seeing significant in-app content within search results within the next year.