Summary: Flawed reporting by the The Verge, which seems to be relaying some new Google-hostile spin
WITH Chromebooks sales on the rise and all sorts of other commendable moves, Google has become a king of GNU/Linux [1,2], especially when it comes to adoption by the general population. This makes Linux and Java common carriers and it makes Google really, really hated by Microsoft, which now uses attack ads against Google's GNU/Linux products (attack ads are a loser's game).
I was somewhat shocked to see the headline
"Google reportedly now requires 'powered by Android' branding on new phones" (deceiving Google-hostile headline) just the other day. Knowing that the publication (
The Verge) is run by Patel and is often used to disseminate anti-Google or pro-Microsoft spin, I decided to look for any mention of crucial details. Indeed, as it turned out, the "powered by Android" branding is only required when using proprietary apps from Google. This has nothing to do with AOSP and it is probably fair enough (it does not even say "Powered by Google").
When Patel was still working for
Engadget he would occasionally quote lies and Google-hostile smears from
Microsoft lobbyists, giving them a platform. One of Patel's employees, who interviewed me for about an hour regarding the Gates Foundation and OLPC, told me that Patel does not like me; he does not like me because I criticised him after he had published false claims (made by someone on Microsoft's payroll). This is not journalism. It is press-titution.
The bottom line is, be careful not to be 'Scroogled' by
The Verge. There seems to be agenda there. Maybe therein lies the business model.
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Related/contextual items from the news:
Google has also, much to the chagrin of many in the open source community, single-handedly helped Linux to become one of the most popular platforms on the planet.
Yep. Jack Wallen is right. Canonical did a lot for GNU/Linux on desktop and server but that’s just a drop in the bucket compared to the hundreds of millions Google has introduced to the joys of Free Software, stuff you can run anywhere anyway, examine, modify and distribute. Google did that by shipping hardware running the software and selling/shipping units. OEMs pay attention to that.
