Google Play Services 4.1

[techbeck]

09 January 2014 Google Play Services 4.1

 

The latest release of Google Play services has begun rolling out to users. It includes new Turn Based Multiplayer support for games, and a preliminary API for integrating Google Drive into your apps. This update also improves battery life for all users with Google Location Reporting enabled. Once the rollout has completed, you?ll be able to download the SDK using the Android SDK manager and get started with the new APIs. Watch for more information coming soon.

 

Turn Based Multiplayer

Play Games now supports turn-based multiplayer! Developers can build asynchronous games to play with friends and auto-matched players, supporting 2-8 players per game. When players take turns, their turn data is uploaded to Play Services and shared with other players automatically.

We are also providing an optional new ?Connecting to Play Games? transition animation during sign-in, before the permission dialog appears. This helps contextualize the permission dialog, especially in games that ask for sign in on game start.

 

Google Drive

This version of Google Play Services includes a developer preview of the new Google Drive API for Android. You can use it to easily read and write files in Google Drive so they're available across devices and on the web. Users can work with files offline too ? changes are synced with Google Drive automatically when they reconnect.

 

The API also includes common UI components including a file picker and save dialog.

 

Google Mobile Ads

With Google Play services 4.1, the Google Mobile Ads SDK now fully supports DoubleClick for Publishers, DoubleClick Ad Exchange, and Search Ads for Mobile Apps. You can also use a new publisher-provided location API to provide Google with the location when requesting ads. Location-based ads can improve your app monetization.

 

Google+

An improved Google+ sharing experience makes it even easier for users to share with the right people from your app. It includes better auto-complete and suggested recipients from Gmail contacts, device contacts and people on Google+.

 

More About Google Play Services

To learn more about Google Play services and the APIs available to you through it, visit the Google Services of the Android Developers site.

 

http://android-developers.blogspot.com/2014/01/google-play-services-41.html