Google Rumored To Be Readying Popular Apps Like YouTube And Maps For Windows 10 Ecosystem

It's no secret that Google and Microsoft haven't been on the friendliest terms for quite some time, something the large number of lawsuits each firm has filed against the other has no doubt had something to do with. However, it appears that the frosty relationship may be thawing. Last week, both companies revealed that all lawsuits filed against each other would be dropped, so that both could work together in the future "to benefit our customers".

On the Microsoft side, we've seen a definite warming-up to Google this past year, at least where Android is concerned. This past summer, the company officially released its Office suite for the platform, and just two months ago, it even ported its Cortana AI assistant to Android. More recently, the company brought Google's VP9 codec to its Edge Web browser, and both companies are part of a group that will push for royalty-free video codecs.

Isn't it about time that Google returns some of the favor, and ports its own popular apps to Microsoft's platforms? According to rumor, that could happen, and it could happen very soon.

As we posted earlier, Microsoft is hosting an event tomorrow which will see a number of new devices launched. It's anticipated that Google will be on-hand to promote the new ways that it's supporting those devices - one of which is expected to be the Surface 4. In particular, Google could announce an official Windows 10 (and Windows 8, I'd assume) YouTube app. That's one that would perfectly complement a device such as the Surface 4. We'd also expect to see support extended to Windows 10 Mobile smartphones as well.

YouTube could just be the start to things, though. Google has a number of other apps that could perfectly suit the "Modern" UI of Windows 8 and Windows 10, such as Google Maps, Google Drive, and Google Docs.

The times, they sure are a changin'.