Hi All, Today was not as good of day as I had hoped. Every morning I tap the keyboard between 5 and 5:30 AM and get after it. I've been doing this for a long time. When Android appeared, I jumped thinking Android had the potential to remake computing as we knew it. A link I use searches Google News for articles regarding Android and today, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/william-volk/mountain-view-we-have-a-p_b_189252.html, caught my eye. The title, "Mountain View, We Have A Problem ... Google's Android Phone Disappoints Developers" at made me think a squeaky wheel was making noise again but after reading the whole article, and letting it settle for a while, my go go Android attitude was getting the "you better look at the whole picture again" notification.
Android has an excellent engineering team working every known technical issue. For me, the technical side of Android was a challenge in the beginning as my programming skills were somewhat dated. After investing considerable time and energy learning Java, Eclipse, and Android, doing the ADC1, and wading though several sdk updates, I created some non trival applications for the Android Market. So far so good right? mmm... not quite. The downloads of my free application are somewhat in line with adjusted expectations. Sales of paid programs are worse than terrible. At first I thought it was me, or my application, or my help pages, or what? The above mentioned article had the painful detail. "To buy an application for your Android phone, you have to opt into Google Checkout. Most users have not done this." When Google/T-Mobile choose the Google Checkout system, Android independent developers were heading for oblivion. Google and T-Mobile should be ashamed to be missing such an important marketing detail. Forcing honest T-Mobile customers to join Googles checkout club breaks the wildly successful model of the Iphone. Android Market should be offering free credit to Android customers guaranteed by the customers T-Mobile account. You want to buy stuff, your in, go wild, have fun, explore. If the customer doesn't want to use their T-Mobile account as payment guarantee, here are the methods of payment accepted by the software vendor. Instead, customers of the Android ecosystem MUST become members of Google Checkout. When faced with this barrier, a customers buyers beware instinct is triggered, the 99 cent customer is lost, and the whole system breaks down. As an Android independent software developer, Android is wonderful software. The hardware is the finest technology available to humankind. However, I'm presently being forced to the sidelines cause there isn't a viable market for Android products. Until Google/ Android/any_carrier breaks free of Google Checkout, an independent Android developer can not sustain a viable business plan. Show me a vibrant market model and successful sustainable business plans will abound. Take a look at the Iphone market. Somewhere I read Android was like having a software aircraft carrier. Let's hope Android will withstand a few icebergs. Cheers, Wes --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Android Discuss" 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-discuss?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
