Android Market finally allowing paid apps
updated 03:00 pm EST, Fri February 13, 2009
Android Market Paid Apps
Google this afternoon revealed that Android Market has the infrastructure in place for developers to charge money for apps downloaded through the mobile store. The implementation uses Google Checkout for the backing infrastructure and will let developers set their own prices through the same system used to publish the apps themselves. A limited rollout is planned and will start first with the US in the middle of next week, while Austria, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain coming before the end of March.
Other countries will also get paid apps for the Market and will be announced sometime in the same period.
The launch is a crucial step for Android. Paid apps have been available for the platform but have had to go outside of Android Market to work, where the apps are less likely to be visible. An absence of commercial software has also skewed more of Android's third-party app base towards small utilities and other software that can be developed for free.
Most apps at Apple's App Store for the iPhone, whose OS is the most direct competitor to Android, are still free but have been supplemented by games and professional apps that until now have been impractical on Android.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Aug 2007
I'm dying to see the
quality of these paid apps for Android. I keep hearing that the Apple iPhone apps are such c***. 10% decent apps and the rest are just taking up space. I'm sure curious to see what is going to make these Android apps so unusual aside from the fact they can run in the background. Since Google says that nearly anything will be accepted, I figure there'd be less quality control or attention to the quality of the apps. I'd figure Android would also get a lot of f*** apps or Flashlight Apps. And Android will probably have a dozen different browsers, but so what. I've just got to see how Android is going to put the iPhone out of business.