A new Google strategy has raised some eyebrows in the tech industry.
In an announcement to developers, Google has revealed a way to “deep link” to apps available on the iOS from Google search results in the Safari browser, meaning that a search result for a location would show up as a “deep link” that would send users straight to the page for that place within an app, according to a PhoneArena report.
This has been a feature that Android has had for a while, Google noted in the announcement, and now there are additional ways to use that feature.
The benefit is that it will be easier to get out of the Safari browser and go straight to the apps themselves — good for Android users, but maybe not so good for Apple.
“App Indexing is now compatible with HTTP deep link standards for iOS 9, as it has been on Android from the beginning,” the announcement states according to the report. “And, of course, on Android, you can still get your content into the Search results page, autocompletions, and Now on Tap by adding HTTP deep links and integrating with the App Indexing API.”
The Android operating system, which is developed by Google, is the rival to Apple’s iOS, used on its iPhone and iPad products. Google purchased Android back in 2005, knowing that they would have to find a way to compete with Apple. Android was officially uneviled a couple years later. The source code for Android is released under open source licenses, allowing developers to create all sorts of apps, making the platform more attractive to users who have more options.