Microsoft Adds Support For Google Cloud Messaging, Git And Custom APIs To Azure Mobile Services
Microsoft today announced a number of updates to its Azure Mobile Services that include support for Git source control, custom APIs and Android push notifications through Google Cloud Messaging to its mobile backend service.
Context & Ripple Effects
Microsoft had already made Git a broader part of its developer tooling through Git support for Visual Studio and Team Foundation products in January 2013. Bringing it into Azure Mobile Services connects that source-control push to the mobile backend layer.
The addition of Google Cloud Messaging support gives Azure Mobile Services an Android notification path alongside its backend tooling, while custom APIs let developers put application-specific server logic behind the service.
First-order effects
- Developers using Azure Mobile Services can manage service code with Git and add custom API endpoints rather than being confined to the service's built-in backend functions.
- Android developers can use Google Cloud Messaging for push notifications through Azure Mobile Services, expanding the service's reach beyond Microsoft-centric mobile workflows.
Second-order effects
- Microsoft can pitch Azure Mobile Services to Android teams without requiring them to abandon Google's notification system, making the backend choice less tied to the handset platform.
- Google Cloud Messaging becomes part of an Azure-based mobile stack, giving developers a route to combine Google's Android push service with Microsoft's backend hosting.
Third-order effects
- If Microsoft continues integrating developer workflow tools and third-party mobile services, mobile backends will compete on how well they assemble cross-platform application infrastructure rather than on a single operating system's ecosystem.
The trend: Mobile cloud services are evolving into cross-platform developer platforms that combine source control, extensible server logic, and external notification channels.