Cyanogen, Inc. is expanding its anti-Google Android army, this time with a rather unexpected addition. Most of its previous deals have been to replace core functionality offered by Google’s apps and services. This time, however, its partnership with Playphone provides a rather niche feature that isn’t easily found in default Android: a social gaming experience. Now owners of the relatively few Cyanogen OS devices can experience a slightly different gaming setup, connecting with both friends and strangers to discover new games and maybe new friends as well.
To be fair, Google Play Store does already have some of the features that Playphone’s game store app does. Or at least the parts where you get to see what your friends are playing, in case you might want to try them out as well. Playphone, however, takes things further. It is really more like a social network for games, where they can invite and challenge others, flaunt their leaderboard scores, etc. And, of course, you can also download and buy games from Playphone, if the game’s developers choose to make their wares available there.
If you haven’t heard of Playphone, that might not be surprising. It has committed itself to serving emerging markets where the opportunity is ripe for new social networks. Coincidentally, Cyanogen’s current market also focuses on those, making the partnership almost fortuitous. Playphone cites Cyanogen’s more than 50 million users in over 190 countries, but those numbers are mostly via CyanogenMod. The latter’s commitment to open source and choice, however, means that Playphone won’t come preloaded there.
Cyanogen is building up an arsenal of supporters in its quest to produce a Google-free Android to license to hardware manufacturers. Playphone plays one but an important role in that quest. Without Google Play Store, Cyanogen OS users are bereft of many of the advantages of that particular Google product. As far as games are concerned, Playphone is ready to fill in those shoes.
