Skip to main content

Report: Google TV getting rebranded as “Android TV” for next-generation of devices

A new report claims that Google’s next generation of Google TV products are being rebranded to “Android TV” to better communicate the company’s vision of bringing the full Android experience into the living room. GigaOM reports that OEMs producing new Google TV products have informed them that Google is officially changing the branding to Android TV for the next round of products hitting the market. While the company has not yet made the branding change official, it has already started using “Android TV” in some instances, while partners are not including “GoogleTV” branding on recently announced products:

Some of Google’s hardware partners have already made the switch. Sony introduced a new smart TV adapter dubbed the Bravia TV stick last month. The device is based on the most recent version of Google TV, but Sony’s announcement didn’t mention that fact once… Even members of the original Google TV team have started to drop that name when talking about their work. A recently-scheduled developer event in Seoul was officially called “Android TV Developer Day,” and some developers have started to change affiliations in their online biographies from “Google TV” to “Android TV.”

Back in July when Google officially unveiled its new $35 HDMI streaming device called Chromecast, the company’s Android & Chrome chief Sundar Pichai made things clear that Google TV wasn’t going anywhere. At the time, Pichai noted that the company would continue to release Google TV products through its partners and hinted that the product would focus on bringing a full Android experience into the living room, something that Google TV has fallen short of thus far. There are third-party companies producing set-top box products that run a full version of Android in comparison to the scaled back feature set of official Google TV products currently on the market, but these products have failed to gain much traction among set-top box competitors.

The report adds that an official update to Android 4.2 for Google TV devices currently on the market could arrive as soon as this month:

The upgrade to Android 4.2 was officially announced for Q3, but word is that LG will now update their Google TV devices later this month, with other manufacturers following in the coming months.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

You’re reading 9to5Google — experts who break news about Google and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Google on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Comments

Author

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jordan Kahn

Jordan writes about all things Apple as Senior Editor of 9to5Mac, & contributes to 9to5Google, 9to5Toys, & Electrek.co. He also co-authors 9to5Mac’s weekly Logic Pros series and makes music as one half of Toronto-based Makamachine.