New Google Plans to Shift Messages Web App from Android.com to Google.com: Report

In a blow to brand Android, Google is planning to shift its Messages web app — which allows users to manage SMS/MMS messages on their phone from another device — from Android.com to Google.com, a media report said. The move is seen as Google’s plan to minimise the use of the word “Android”, 9to5google.com reported on Wednesday.

The Android Messages web app has long been hosted at the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of “messages.android.com”. But in the coming weeks, the service could be shifted to “messages.google.com”, the report said, citing an upcoming change to Chrome OS.

It is not yet clear when the change will come into effect, but Google may temporarily use both the URLs for to make the transition to messages.google.com smoother.

Earlier this year, Google revealed its plans of discontinuing messaging app Allo to focus on Android Messages app. After making this announcement, the search giant rolled out Android Messages Web option which allowed users to send and receive text messages via a desktop browser.

In addition, it seems like Google is planning to kill Android as we did not hear the word Android even once at the company’s Pixel 3 launch event. Internally, Google is working on a different operating system for mobiles called ‘Fushia OS’ which is expected to replace Android in the near future.