Google aggressively wooing iPhone developers to Android
Google is ramping up its efforts to court iPhone developers to write applications for its Android mobile platform, reaching out directly to programmers in an effort to convince them to expand their creative horizons. The New York Times' David Pogue writes he received a message from iPhone app developer Texts From Last Night, which was recently contacted by a Google representative claiming to write on behalf of the digital services giant's Android Advocacy Group. "He basically said that he wanted to open a line of communication with me in case I chose to port the app to Android, and he offered to ship me a free Nexus One to play around with... Contrast with Apple's approach: it took us about three months of resubmitting our app to Apple before they stopped rejecting it for inappropriate content. And even now (after we peaked at the No. 7 paid app), we still have no relationship with anyone there. Huge difference in approaches between the two companies."
Google announced last week that its Android Market application storefront now boasts about 38,000 apps, a 70 percent quarter-over-quarter increase (although still far behind Apple's App Store, now closing in on 190,000 iPhone and iPod touch apps). Speaking during the firm's Q1 earnings call Thursday, vice president of engineering Jeff Huber also said Google is now selling and activating more than 60,000 new Android devices each day, with the OS powering 34 total devices from a dozen different OEM partners.
For more on Google's developer outreach efforts:
- read this New York Times article
Related articles:
Can Google solve Android fragmentation?
ABI forecasts 800 million Android app downloads in 2010
IDC anticipates Android shipments will near 70 million by 2013
Comments
Posted by Yakubu | April 20, 2010 - 7:04am
The rise of Android is phenomenal. We only have to look at the growth curve and then it becomes obvious that Android will eclipse iPhone in popularity.
Even so, both iPhone and Android will remain the focus of developer activity, with the others not being on the radar.
Being still #1, Apple can behave in a more restrictive manner. However, as Android grows exponentially, Apple will have no choice but to become less restrictive.
Posted by Jeff Bach | April 21, 2010 - 8:32am
"...with the OS powering 34 total devices from a dozen different OEM partners..."
I think this is part of the problem that makes a huge difference in developing for both platforms. How do you test and realistically support an App that needs to work across 34 different devices? OS, OS version, screen size, screen aspect ratio, processor, etc. imo Google needs to smooth this out. Apple's one screen size, one device, one processor, etc. is a bit easier to test and support.
JB
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