Ina Fried

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So Here’s Why You May Have Trouble Finding the Android Market Icon on Your Phone

Get ready for some changes to the Android home screen.

Google plans to rename the Android Market as well as its books, movies and music apps, rebranding all of them under the “Google Play” brand. Over the next week or so, the Android Market icon will change to “Google Play Store,” while each of the other apps will get new monikers the next time they are updated.

It’s all part of an effort by Google to unify its fledgling efforts to become a serious player in music and video sales.

Google is also making similar changes on the Web, unifying Google Music, the Web-based Android Market and its e-book store. With music, Google has actually had two separate experiences: one for buying music and another for playing it back.

In an interview, Google’s Chris Yerga said the primary reason for the changes is to give people one-stop shopping for different types of media and to make sure consumers know that the content they buy can be played both on the Web and on Android devices. However, he said Google would also like to see the effort result in more sales of its newer content types.

“We’re actually pretty happy with how the non-apps verticals have been performing,” Yerga said, but added that “it’s always better if those things are climbing at even higher velocities.”

Media companies continue to say that Google remains a challenging company to do business with. For example, Warner Music’s Edgar Bronfman said at D: Dive Into Media that Google Music is “an oxymoron.”

Google didn’t comment specifically on Bronfman’s statement, though a representative did say: “We want to work with everybody and we’ve been able to sign deals with many media companies.”

Other than the name changes, though, Google said it is making no changes to the content of its stores or its business terms or practices.

With each of the content types, Google allows people to play their content either on Android or the Web. With some — but not all — media types, Google has apps for other devices, such as the iPhone.

“You are always going to get the premier experience on your Android device,” Yerga said. “We support other devices where it makes sense but that’s not the core thing.”

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