Google product head Sundar Pichai has answered Tim Cook's criticism of Android, giving criticism of his own to Apple.
In particular, Pichai took aim at Apple's pricing strategy, saying that it was irresponsible of the company to make everything so expensive.
"Users use our services by choice. These are very loved products. We have many many products that have more than 1 billion users," said Pichai during an interview. "They provide a lot of value. And we provide many of these services for free."
It's important to note that while Google does offer many services for free, that doesn't mean that it isn't profiting from those services in some way. Google makes most of its money from advertising, on its services.
"It's a bit irresponsible to say everything should be many hundreds of dollars [as most Apple products are]. We have figured out a way to provide important services to users responsibly," continued Pichai in an intervew with Forbes, highlighting the sense of elitism that many get from Apple. "I think that matters. Most users, if you ask them, they are comfortable with how it works."
The news comes shortly after Motorola President Rick Osterloh defended the freedom that Motorola gives users in design after Jony Ive, senior vice president of design at Apple, suggested that giving users that freedom is a way of "abdicating your responsibility as a designer." Osterleh went on to suggest that Apple charged "outrageous prices."
During the interview, Pichai also went on to suggest that Google would be breaking Google+ up into different services, giving Hangouts and Google+ photos their own place as a separate service.
"I think increasingly you'll see us focus on communications [Hangouts], photos and the Google+ stream as three important areas, rather than being thought of as one area," said Pichai.
The news highlights the lack of enthusiasm that Google+ has seen from consumers since it was first launched, despite great services like Google+ Photos and Google Hangouts, which are being used more and more by users.
The criticism that Apple's products are too expensive will likely fall on deaf ears. Apple has consistently charged more than some might like, however many think that paying for the premium feel and quality of Apple's products is worth it. With Apple set to release the Apple Watch on March 9, and the fact that it sold a massive 10 million iPhone 6's within only a few days, it is highly unlikely that Apple will change the way that it prices its products.
