Did Apple ask Google not to use multi-touch?
Information is now coming out that Apple Computer asked Google not to implement multi-touch technology when the G1 cell phone was being developed on the Android operating system.
Multi-touch technology includes flicking, swiping, pinching, unpinching, and other similar finger moves that were made popular by the iPhone. The lack of these features were seen as design shortfalls by many industry pundits, and were cited by many as reasons why the G1 was inferior to the iPhone, especially since the G1’s touch screen design makes it possible to implement the technology.
Now, VentureBeat (a venture capital news organization) is reporting that multi-touch was not included on the G1 because Apple asked Google not to include it, according to a Yahoo article. This information is said to come from a member of the Google Android team, who further reported that Google agreed to Apple’s request. Some members of the Android team were happy about Google’s decision for a very simple reason: given Apple’s stance on the patents for multi-touch, it was felt that trying to include them on Android would have resulted in prolonged legal actions and thus delays in the introduction of the G1.
Some experts agree that it made sense for Google to make the decision it did. Michael Gartenberg, vice president of strategy and analysis for Interpret LLC, says, “Apple appears to have several patents for the concept of multi-touch as it relates to phones. But it’s also important to note that while Apple competes with Google to some extent in this space, Google is also an important partner for Apple on the iPhone and elsewhere.”
Gartenberg is probably right. Google is one of the companies that has made great strides in tailoring its services for the iPhone platform, making it easier for iPhone users to use Google products there. It is thought likely that, given the friendly relationship between Apple and Google, some sort of deal can be reached between the two if Googles feels that it needs to incorporate multi-touch onto Android products.
This seems much smarter than the route taken by Palm, who simply went ahead and incorporated multi-touch into their new Pre smartphone. That decision is likely to result in considerable legal action against Palm to support Apple’s patent rights to the technology. Google may have taken the wiser route.
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