The year 2020 has begun and will again have many exciting topics and new products ready for Google fans. Still, we can probably also look forward to significant innovations in 2020 for existing products.
For some products and platforms, 2020 could already be a year of destiny, because some Google projects are at a crossroads and are finally doomed to success or discontinued. A little glimpse into the crystal ball of what could become important in 2020.
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Google had a very mixed year in 2019 in every respect, with naked figures showing strong growth again for the company as a whole and sales, but external influences that cannot be measured in figures have hit in many places. The year 2020 will not be easy either, mainly because CEO Sundar Pichai is now taking on another task, which could give the company some new impetus.
The big Google cemetery is growing: These Google products will be discontinued in 2020
Not a year goes by in which Google does not launch new products, so that it can be assumed that in 2020, too, some new additions will be presented at the latest at the Google I/O developer conference in May 2020. In this article, however, we want to deal with the products already on the market, which will have to step on the gas this year to avoid being on the hit list soon.
But we also look at which products are still in the starting blocks and are expected for the coming year.
Stadia
The Stadia gaming platform was only launched at the beginning of November 2019 and will be opened to all users in the coming weeks - only then will the platform have to pass its acid test. For reasons that are difficult to understand, Stadia already does not necessarily have the best reputation, and Google must do its utmost to ensure that the global launch is not as bumpy as the Founder launch.
For Stadia, it's not all about everything yet, as the project is deeply rooted in many areas of the company and has a very long-term outlook, but a weak 2020 could also weaken internal support. This year the course will be set so that it will be an extremely important year for Stadia.
YouTube music
YouTube Music is now entering its third year, still has no resounding successes to show, and still has its predecessor Google Play Music on its back. Even though Google keeps bringing minor updates to YouTube Music, from the outside, it is no longer possible to say that the company is completely convinced of the current streaming strategy. YouTube Music has to deliver, which is hardly possible given the huge competition and the strange link to the video platform.
Is it a fateful year for YouTube Music? Absolutely. If the product remains a niche product, I can already see the next reboot or complete withdrawal from music streaming. The Google graveyard awaits...
Android automotive
Android Automotive will be on the market for the first time in a few months and will bring a real Google operating system to the car, which has not much in common with its sister product Android Auto. For Google, however, this will be a very bumpy road for several reasons. The car manufacturers will not want to give up the data sovereignty demanded by Google so easily. Despite an enormously strong Android Auto distribution, Automotive will by no means be a self-runner.
Google is likely to invest a great deal in the first wave of Android Automotive this year, and I wouldn't be surprised if the operating system becomes more of a focus and is provided with updates much more frequently than it has been with Auto so far. Automotive is a very long-term project, but still, a good start can't hurt. 2020 will be very important.
Chrome OS
Chrome OS is already an old hand among the Google operating systems but has not achieved significant distribution outside the US school market. Although practically all major manufacturers, even in this country, offer Chromebooks, the operating system remains a niche. Even the expansion to tablets has not ensured that Chrome OS appears in any operating system statistics in any apparent order of magnitude.
In 2020 things should finally start to improve if the operating system doesn't want to run the risk of being replaced by the project in the following paragraph, which is based on very similar concepts and could probably easily take over and significantly expand the tasks of Chrome OS. Is 2020 a fateful year for Chrome OS? Possibly. Wild speculation: Because Chrome OS was the first big project of today's Google CEO Sundar Pichai, he holds his protective hand over it. But for how much longer?
Fuchsia
2020 will be the year of Fuchsia! Yes, I have already claimed 2018 and 2019. But while back then, we received a lot of information about the upcoming operating system, and the development proceeded rapidly, Google is now in its final phase. The launch of Fuchsia is being prepared, the teams are being increased, and the user interfaces have been developed behind closed doors for almost a year. That it will take another year seems more unlikely than ever, at least at the moment.
I hope that Fuchsia will be presented for the first time at the Google I/O 2020 and could then play a more important role this year.
Fitbit
Google will complete the Fitbit acquisition this year and present the first new projects on both the hardware and software sides and perhaps even launch products on the market. So far, Google hasn't been very lucky with its hardware, and the Fitbit acquisition, however, well it fits into the current strategy, is not a foregone conclusion. All the departments involved must now show that Google can finally play a role in the fitness and wearable market and make a significant contribution to it.
Of course, these were only the lighthouse projects that I would personally bet on. Of course, Android 11 will also play a big role, the Chrome browser will probably change a lot this year, and there will also be big innovations in products like Google Drive or Google Photos.
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