New made-in-India alternative to Google Play Store may soon be available for Android users

As per a report by TechCrunch, homegrown digital payments and financial services company PhonePe is developing an app store to compete with Google Play Store in the country. The app store’s goal is to help developers acquire “high-quality” users through multilingual solutions by offering hyper-localized services based on client context.

Google Play Store alternative in India

According to an internal business document seen by TechCrunch, PhonePe’s anticipated entry into the app store industry comes after the Bengaluru-based startup purchased IndusOS, a provider of app stores that catered to clients through partnerships with smartphone manufacturers.

Google currently dominates 97 per cent of the Indian app store market and PhonePe, with its 450 million registered users in India, has the potential to create a localised app store that caters to the country’s language, discovery, and consumer interests, as per a company official.

PhonePe, which fiercely competes with Google Pay in India, intends to deepen its relationships with smartphone manufacturers, including companies like Xiaomi, citing a source, the report said.

According to the document, the app store will provide a “premier experience for millions of users with high-quality advertisements and custom targeting,” as well as support for 12 different languages and round-the-clock live chat.

Since the Competition Commission of India (CCI) made it clear that Google cannot engage in anti-competitive practices, PhonePe confirmed that it is in multiple conversations with Indian phone manufacturers. It claims that everyone is very receptive to the idea.