[Android Developer Previews] XDARoni:
Huawei Mobile Services, or HMS, is Huawei’s alternative to GMS, consisting of user-facing apps as well as core background services. The idea behind HMS is the same as that of GMS — to provide an experience that is consistent across devices and independent of the platform update. Much like how GMS is made up of app elements and core elements, the HMS ecosystem comprises of HMS Apps, the HMS Core, and the HMS Capabilities that the Core enables through its available APIs.

HMS Ecosystem has seen its monthly average users increase from 420 Million globally in July 2018 to a huge 530 Million by July 2019, while developers registered on this platform grew from 450,000 to 910,000 in the same time period, and HMS Core app integration grew from 20,000 apps to 43,000 apps. Google does not release figures for its GMS integrations, so getting scale here is difficult against the #1 player, but these are still impressive figures in absolute terms. According to additional figures revealed by Huawei, HMS Core has a global reach of 530 Million users in more than 170 countries (including China), while still providing features such as cost-effectiveness, a unified portal for one-stop integration, and precise user targeting through multiple promotion channels. Huawei also claims to be compliant with international security and privacy standards, including GAPP, GDPR, and local regulations within its ambit.

All of this will merely remain marketing points if HMS Core does not incorporate the APIs that GMS Core provides. In order to be a replacement for GMS Core, HMS Core needs to provide similar, if not better, functionality to developers, if it wishes to persuade them to consider itself as a valid option and migrate over from using GMS Core. HMS Ecosystem is currently limited only to Huawei devices, but even on its own, this is a massive subset of Android devices. Huawei alone has shipped over 200 Million smartphones this year so far, which is a substantially large number for app developers to take notice. As an app developer, it becomes essential to adapt to these devices as well as other Huawei devices that may not ship with GMS in the future. Even if GMS makes a return to Huawei, HMS continues to be part of Huawei’s larger ecosystem strategy, where the smartphone becomes the central focal point that is used to control connected IoT devices. So adapting your app to play well with the HMS Ecosystem does make a compelling business argument. You don’t want to make the same mistakes that Snapchat did when it ignored its Android userbase for years and only woke up to pay attention to them very recently.

To offer more detail on the APIs that HMS Core provides to developers, here is a brief overview.

Account Kit

Provide a quick and secure way for users to sign in to your app.

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Awareness Kit

Get the context and status of your users to give them a smarter experience.

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Drive Kit

Enable your users to store and manage their data securely on the cloud.

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FIDO

Authenticate your users through biometric and FIDO2 identity securely.

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Game Service

Focus on innovating the gaming experience with in-depth services.

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Health Kit

Build an app with the strength and stamina to keep up with your users and their fitness data.

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Identity Kit

Make address authorization and management easier and faster for your users.

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Location Kit

Get user locations faster and more precisely with fused geolocation.

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Map Kit

Personalize your map display and interactivity for better location-based services.

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ML Kit

Take advantage of machine learning for vision and language services.

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Nearby Service

Give your apps the ability to communicate with nearby devices.

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Panorama Kit

Enable your users to browse and interact with images with a 360° view in a simulated 3D space.

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Safety Detect

Build and maintain a secure app with multiple checks.

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Scan Kit

Give your users access to the QR and other barcodes conveniently.

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Site Kit

Provide services specific to the place your users are in.

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WisePlay DRM

Protect your content with free and standard copyright capabilities.

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Analytics Kit

Collect and analyze your data efficiently on a one-stop platform.

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Dynamic Tag Manager

Monitor and analyze your marketing activities with code-free and flexible tag management.

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Push Kit

Improve targeting and responsiveness when engaging users.

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Ads Kit

Access high-quality ads for getting the most value out of your monetizable traffic.

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In-App Purchases

Monetize your app around the world with a global payment service.

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Wallet Kit

Be part of the All-in-One Wallet digital lifestyle with convenient access to other businesses and services.

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You can find active discussions, tutorials, and news about HMS in the XDA Huawei Developers Forum.