Google will fold Chrome OS into the Android mobile OS, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Google is expected to tease the combined OS next year before a 2017 launch, the paper said.

Google has separate desktop and mobile operating systems: Chrome OS for Chromebooks comes with its own branded Web browser and PC-based software, while Android powers smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, TVs, and in-car infotainment.

Initially unsure which system would succeed, Google nurtured both, the Journal said. But Android has prevailed. Now, instead of fussing over two operating systems, the company will allegedly merge them into one powerhouse program. The move could allow PC users to access the Google Play store, and would lessen app developers' workload.

The Journal said Chromebooks will be renamed, while its Web browser will still be known as Chrome.

Google did not immediately respond to PCMag's request for comment. But Hiroshi Lockheimer, vice president of engineering at Google, on Thursday tweeted that "There's a ton of momentum for Chromebooks and we are very committed to Chrome OS."

There's a ton of momentum for Chromebooks and we are very committed to Chrome OS. I just bought two for my kids for schoolwork!— Hiroshi Lockheimer (@lockheimer) October 30, 2015

In early 2013, Google combined its Android and Chrome teams, handing control of the new division to Sundar Pichai, then-senior vice president of Chrome (and now Google CEO).

A week later, executive chairman Eric Schmidt promised that the search giant would continue to develop Android and Chrome separately, saying the two "serve different purposes and will remain different products." The two, he conceded, could overlap more in the future.

Microsoft has already moved toward one OS with Windows 10, which is available on PCs and mobile devices, with some overlapping software and apps.