Amazon ships smartphones with Google apps and Amazon apps in firmware

Amazon has started shipping smartphones with both Amazon apps and Google apps in the firmware. The web store gives Prime customers a discount in exchange for providing Amazon services and watching ads on the lockscreen.

Amazon calls the phones Prime Exclusive Phones and in exchange for the advertisements and the delivery of the apps, customers receive a 50 dollar discount on the purchase price. For now, only users in the United States can use the offer to purchase smartphones. The two phones that are now in the program are a model from the American brand Blu and the Moto G4 from Motorola.

The ads appear on the lock screen as notifications and users can swipe them away if they are not interested. The model does not differ much from what Amazon has been doing for years with its e-readers and tablet under its own brand, where there is often a cheaper option with ads on the lockscreen.

The American site Recode suspects that Google will use Amazon’s phones as an example in the case of Google and the European Commission. The Commission suspects Google of abuse of power with its Android phones.

Bundling your own apps and functions, even if they double with services from Google, is nothing new. Both manufacturers and providers have been doing this almost since the beginning of the advance of Android. In the past, many Microsoft services have also been available on smartphones from various Android manufacturers.