In early January, the Telegraph reported that major European telecoms are pressuring Apple to create a tool that would help users switch from iOS to Android, and a senior industry source claimed that Apple privately agreed to develop the tool. Shortly after the report went viral, Apple spoke to BuzzFeed News to refute the story entirely.
“There is no truth to this rumor,” Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller said in a statement to BuzzFeed News. “We are entirely focused on switching users from Android to iPhone, and that is going great.”
The Telegraph’s report hinted that telecoms think that the reason a small fraction of iPhone users switch to Android is because of the hassle involved in switching over. The situation puts the telecoms at a disadvantage when negotiating with Apple, since it can dictate whatever it wants the pricing of its phones to be, the report claimed. Whether telecoms do feel that way or not, Apple says it will absolutely not make an iOS to Android switching tool.
In fact, last year Apple launched its first Android app called Move to iOS, which is a data transfer too for Android users who want to switch to the iPhone. On top of the normal assistance with data transfers, it also looks at the apps installed on the user’s Android phone to build an app library on iTunes. What was most fascinating about the app was the fact that Apple didn’t develop it, and instead, repackaged an app that was already available in the Google Play Store.
Apple followed up with a more polished Android app for Apple Music last November. It’s not getting great reviews from Android users, but Apple did build the app from the ground up with Android in mind.
It seems that those are the only two apps Apple currently has in mind for Android users, now that rumors of an Apple-made iOS to Android migration tool have been squashed.
