Few businesses do consumer-facing software as good as or better than Google — Android is a solid example, which powers some ofthe best smartphonesright now. But the company is also infamous forkilling products prematurely, abandoning apps untimely, and renaming its services, often without a solid reason, leading to confusion on the users’ end. Over the years, quite a few mainstream Google apps and services underwent such rebrandings, which haven’t particularly gone down well with users and critics alike. Here are some of the most notable rebrands in Google’s recent history.
1Hangouts → Google Meet/Google Chat
The epitome of Google’s wild messaging strategy
It’s better for all of us if we stay away fromGoogle’sillustrioushistory with messaging appsbecause deep down that rabbit hole, there is nothing but a whole lot of mess that even Google can’t wrap its head around.
But a major change that came to Google’s current crop of messaging apps as it moved away from the Hangouts branding, which was in use for both personal and business communication despite the playful name. It’s since been replaced — aftera few detoursalong the route — withGoogle MeetandGoogle Chat. While the latter is available for personal use as well as enterprises, it’s not to be confused withGoogle Messagesthat you use to connect with your contacts over RCS messaging.
Google Meet replaced Duofor personal video calls as well. Duo (launched alongside Allo, yetanothernow defunct messaging app) was a much catchier and more fun name that people easily remembered. But on Google’s whim, it was replaced with the more spiritless moniker: Google Meet. In Google’s favor, it makes sense to have a single product to serve both its personal and business customers instead of offering two parallel services. Since the name aligns better with Google’s new, serious personality, we hope that Meet won’t see another rebranding in the near future.
2Google Play Music → YouTube Music
Dismantling the Play brand in favor of YouTube
The move from Google Play Music to YouTube Music was a big transition. That’s because it was much more than just a name change. Google basically asked long-time users of a well-established and well-liked service to switch to a then-new and still-in-development music streaming app. And as you’d expect, things didn’t go about as smoothly as one would hope.
While it seemed logical for Google to move to a service with the YouTube moniker attached, considering its brand value in the media business,YouTube Musicwasn’t yet close to the outgoing Play Music in several areas. The transition period was marred by a lot of frustrations; users complained about many missing features (like better playlist controls), others couldn’t find their purchased albums, transferred music was often reported to be broken, and more.
Old features from Play Music arrived painfully slowly on YouTube Music, but the latter has gotten better considerably since its early days. It’s now usable without a lot of frustrations, though Google still needs to pick up pace and bring newer features more quickly to keep up with the competition.
3Android TV → Google TV
The messiest rebrand of them all, if you can even call it that
Android TV being rebranded to Google TV isn’t a transition if you think about it, as Android TV still exists alongside Google TV. Google TV was announced as a modern way of interacting with your TV, with a home page populated by your personalized recommendations and a unified watchlist. In that sense,Google TVis nothing but a launcher that runs on top of Android TV. But that’s not all.
Google seems interested in promoting Google TV more than the underlying Android TV, which can leave those who don’t live and breathe Android news confused about the state of Android TV. It doesn’t help that Android TV also still exists separately with a launcher interface of its own, which was evenupdated recently with a fresh coat of paintto resemble — you guessed it, Google TV. And there’s more. Google TV is also an app for your smartphone that offers access to all your purchased and rented content, lets you browse the catalog, and allows you to manage your watchlist.
So, if you say Google TV, it could mean any of these things mentioned above, including Andorid TV — not confusing at all. Classic Google!
4Android Wear → Wear OS
A pointless rebrand with Wear OS only compatible with Android these days
Android Wear being changed to Wear OS is perhaps one of the few rebrandings that actually made sense, but the very reason for the switch is no longer valid. Let me explain. Back in the day, smartwatches powered by Google’s operating system could be paired with both Android devices and iPhones. And having Android in the OS’s name didn’t send the right message to potential buyers who could think that an Android Wear watch is not compatible with their iPhone. The new name also fitted well into Google’s plan to make its brand more prominent.
However,Wear OSwatches now work exclusively with Android phones, just like the Apple Watch is to an iPhone, negating the purpose of the switch. But that’s not my only problem. The term “wear” is quite vague. You even wear your glasses, so would a future pair of Google AR glasses also run Wear OS? Sounds quite absurd, doesn’t it? It would’ve helped the cause if Google was more specific with its approach, like Apple’s watchOS is.
Can Wear OS undergo another name change? Given how Google works, I wouldn’t bet against it.
5Android Market → Google Play Store
Could it be just a matter of time until the Play Store gets rebranded again?
The all-familiar Google Play Store was once called Android Market. After this transition, the new name has stuck so far and is quite recognizable by end users. This goofy Play branding worked well when Google and Android held the image of the fun brand while Apple was that serious guy who meant business. However,we’ve seen these roles reverse in recent years. A big sign of that was Google deciding to drop those amusing dessert names for its Android versions (though they still exist internally) for a duller numerical system.
Android Police alumnus Ryne Hagerargued that Google should drop the Play branding altogetherafter it moved many of its services away from it — viz. Play Music andPlay Movies & TV. If Google really wants to project a more sincere persona for the customers who seek stability from a brand, Play Store is the one thing I’d want Google to rebrand, going by the new direction Android has taken. And it would also make it easier for the company’s future software platforms to embrace the more universal app store.
Rebrands galore
The latest Google servicelikely to undergo a name change soon is Nearby Share, Google’s answer to Apple AirDrop. It could be renamed to Quick Share, suggesting a partnership with Samsung. If anything, this indicates that Google is nowhere close to ceasing its rebranding spree. While we’ve seen many Google services get a new name and identity in the past, there’s more coming your way. So, brace yourself.
