Bullish Maze

Kuku FM vs Google: A Battle of Podcasts and Policies

Kuku FM is an online podcast platform that offers audio content in various Indian languages, such as audiobooks, poems, news, jokes, and stories. The co-founder and CEO of Kuku FM is Lal Chand Bisu, who started the company in 2018 along with Vinod Meena and Vikas Goyal. According to Bisu, Kuku FM has over 1.5 million users and more than 5,000 hours of content. The company has raised $5.5 million in Series A funding from Vertex Ventures, 3one4 Capital, Shunwei Capital and India Quotient.

Kuku FM is one of the many Indian apps that have been affected by Google’s controversial policy of enforcing its Google Play billing system, which requires digital services apps to use its payment system and pay a commission of 15% or 30%, or face removal from the Play Store. Bisu has called Google “the most evil company for businesses” and said that the Indian startup system is “completely in their fist”. He has also accused Google of favoring its own products, such as YouTube Music, over other apps.

Google is a global technology company that provides internet-related products and services, such as search, advertising, cloud computing, software, and hardware. Google is also known for its innovations in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and quantum computing. However, Google has also faced many criticisms and controversies over its practices and policies, such as:

• Alleged anti-conservative bias and censorship of certain content on its platforms, such as YouTube, Google News, and Google Search.
• Privacy breaches and data collection issues, such as the Cambridge Analytica scandal, the Google+ bug, the Street View Wi-Fi snooping, and the Google Location History tracking.
• Plans to re-enter China with a censored version of its search engine, codenamed Project Dragonfly, which was reportedly terminated after internal and external backlash.
• Enforcement of its Google Play billing system, which requires digital services apps to use its payment system and pay a commission of 15% or 30%, or face removal from the Play Store.

Google has defended its policy of charging a commission from apps that use its payment system, saying that it is a standard practice in the industry and that it helps maintain a secure and consistent experience for users and developers. Google has also said that it is open to engaging with the Indian government and the app developers to address their concerns and find a solution that works for everyone.

However, many Indian app developers have expressed their dissatisfaction and frustration with Google’s policy, saying that it is unfair, arbitrary, and monopolistic. They have also argued that Google’s policy violates India’s competition laws and harms the interests of the Indian app ecosystem. Some of them have even joined forces to form an alliance to challenge Google’s dominance and create an alternative app store.

The conflict between Kuku FM and Google is not just a matter of podcasts and policies, but also a reflection of the larger issues of digital sovereignty, data privacy, and innovation in India. As the world’s second-largest internet market, India has a huge potential and a diverse range of users and creators. How the Indian government and the app developers will deal with Google’s policy and its implications will have a significant impact on the future of the Indian digital space.