Google wants android to become Iphone. It makes business sense. However they cant do it all at once, they have to take small steps in order to keep the community at bay. That is sad, there is already so much features of Android thats being blocked by Google, that I don't even bother publishing on the app store any more. I develop for my own customer base with private distribution. Will probably not be to long, before a Google certified phone can only install apps from the playstore, (like Apple). So yes Android needs a new competitor tbh.