I'm trying to counter piracy in a slightly different way: Providing quality updates on a regular basis.
Assume you have a game and release new features (like new characters, levels, achievements and other gimmicks) every few weeks or months. Note the users that an update is available from within your game, e.g. add a notification icon, because pirated copies won't show as installed or "update available" in the Android market. Animate people to check back your website and update your app on a regular basis. Of course those updates will be ripped again but this takes another few days. During that time people not able to update (because of a pirated copy) might choose to buy it instead of waiting for a pirate release. >From my experience a lot of "pirates" aren't bad guys but think that it would be fair to "test" an app before purchasing it even though there is a trial or lite version available, too. Those people you have to address. Generally as a software seller I wouldn't care too much about piracy as there's absolutely nothing you can do about it. It will happen regardless of how hard you try. Especially if you have a great product. Instead invest your time in binding customers to your company and your products, make them use your app as often as possible and cross-market your other stuff. Try to retain your customers. My former boss once told me that he prefers people pirating his own product to people installing a competitive one. There's a lot of truth in this :) -- André http://android.rabold.org On 18 Nov., 00:27, Dan Sherman <[email protected]> wrote: > Just do it within those 325 characters, and hope you don't have anything > more important to say :) > > On Tue, Nov 17, 2009 at 6:12 PM, Paul Turchenko > <[email protected]>wrote: > > > I'm pretty sure we, as a developers, can warn users and explain why we > > need certain permissions and assure him that we will not abuse them. > > > On Nov 17, 3:30 am, Jason Van Anden <[email protected]> wrote: > > > On Mon, Nov 16, 2009 at 4:17 PM, nEx.Software > > > > <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > If I don't believe an application should require Internet, I don't > > > > install it. I hope that there are others who do the same. To require > > > > internet permissions (with the current generic internet permission) on > > > > an app which really does not need it, such as aiFlashlight, gives me > > > > reason to question the motives of that developer. I ask myself "Now, > > > > why the heck would a flashlight app require internet permissions?" ... > > > > Here's an answer: Maybe its a good way to understand if the > > > application works in the field, like ... to get error messages and > > > such? Or perhaps its a good way to understand how and if users > > > actually use the app or prefer particular features? > > > > I have some paranoid user who regularly updates a comment on my apps > > > Market listing with something like "Why would a music app that plays > > > local files need internet access? Spying?" Um ... so if I had a > > > streaming music app ... uh, then what? There would be no suspicion of > > > spying? > > > > :) > > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google > > Groups "Android Developers" group. > > To post to this group, send email to [email protected] > > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > > [email protected]<android-developers%[email protected]> > > For more options, visit this group at > >http://groups.google.com/group/android-developers?hl=en > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Android Developers" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/android-developers?hl=en
