According to the Android Developer’s Blog the Android Market is now available in Korea, This is a HUGE benefit for all those new Samsung Galaxy S Owners in Korea! Thanks Google! For developers this is a lot more users ready to consume some apps!
As of today, Android Market is open for business to application buyers in the Republic of Korea. We hope that this will make the outstanding Android devices now available in that nation even more useful and fun. We welcome the people of Korea, acknowledged everywhere as one of the world’s most-wired societies, to the world of Android.
via Android Developers Blog: Android Market Welcomes Korea!.
Notion Ink is the company that got me interested in Android on devices other than phones, A friend told me about the ADAM concept as reported late last year and early this year, Immediately I thought this was the iPad Killer simply because it has all the features the iPad is missing. I think Notion Ink should have released the tablet a little sooner but they claim to still be on track for a pre-holiday release this year. Rohan Shravan has updated the company blog with new information today! It seems that the “Alpha” App and Content stores are up and running (and apparently tested) and they also note that Flash is working and not causing battery issues which is another good thing. While lite on the details its still good to see and hear updates about this tablet, It will be the one I buy as long as it hits US shores before Christmas this year. If it doesn’t hit by then unfortunantly I will say they missed their opportunity to bring a revolutionary product to market within a respectable time frame and there will be several other contenders on the scene by then that will have my attention. On a good note though a lot of tech bloggers seems to think this may mean that Google is going to start opening up the Android Market to Tablets, Lilputing seems to thinks so and have the Notion Ink blog as a source… There is nothing there to indicate that this is true, From the beginning Notion Ink has stated that they are going to have an independent store. Again nothing in the blog post says anything to the contrary. Regardless of its ability to access the android market this device will surely allow sideloading of apps so it will not be too difficult to get free apps onto the device paid apps may be another story but I’m sure it will eventually work itself out I have high hopes there and can’t wait to get my hands on this beast.
I think you might have heard about Google Tablet. In time to come we all would know what Notion Ink might have to do with it! The alpha App and Content stores as up and tested for scalability already. Flash is also up without battery issues.
Coming back to that change, Notion Ink is moving to Bangalore. Also, one thing which will change (which is complained by a lot of the blog readers and friends) is the update frequency. You will see a new website, and developer forum is also coming up soon.
I want to share something with you in the coming posts (how we reached this point and what issues came along, few things which must be learned by all the new entrepreneurs).
via http://notionink.wordpress.com/
I somehow missed this a while back, Androinica has posted a great insight into an interview with Android’s Andy Rubin conducted by Business Week, Google may soon have a path for developers to offer subscription services through the Android Market. As many developers know the Android Markets biggest problems come from monetizing apps. At this point its difficult at best to earn a living with Android Apps with some clever marketing and strategic partnerships some developers are getting by but for the most part its nothing to shake a stick at… Check out the article below
The only way for Android developers to directly make money is to sell an app or put ads in one. Comments from Google VP of Engineering Andy Rubin suggest that Android could offer another option of accepting subscriptions or in-app purchases.
In an interview with BusinessWeek, Rubin said that Google is considering incentives to increase Android adoption in Asia. The Android founder cited accepting new payment forms as a possible means of doing that, though he did not offer any specifics. This would open the door for purchasing virtual goods with real money or subscribing to a magazine or news service.
via Android may offer in-app purchases and subscriptions | andrew | Androinica.
Can’t say I completely agree with the title “Google’s mismanagement of the Android Market” but Jon has a pretty good idea about some of the short comings… What would you change?
Earlier this week, CNET ran an article critical of the permission model of the Android Market. Google’s response to the criticism was that “each Android app must get users’ permission to access sensitive information”. While this is technically true, one should not need a PhD in Computer Science to use a smartphone. How is a consumer supposed to know exactly what the permission “act as an account authenticator” means? The CNET opinion piece “Is Google far too much in love with engineering?” is quite relevant here.
via Jon Lech Johansen’s blog.
Wow this is big news in my book! Android-Apps.com is reporting Best Buy will be entering the Android Market! Its not really a surprise when you think about the multitude of carriers and phones they sell in-store and online. I would bet a good portion of their total sales are Android Phones these days.
So what does a big company like Best Buy do when it sees tons of people buying android phones from them? Figure out a way to make them come back and buy more. At least, that is the hope with the new Best Buy Gaming Android app which will be shortly released.
It doesn’t let you download games for your Android as the name may imply, rather it lets you browse the games Best buy may have in stock. For example, say you are interested in a new game and want some more info. Well, just whip out your handy Best Buy app to download trailers, articles, and screen shots (courtesy of GameSpot) or get prices and of course even order/pre-order games from Best Buy’s website. It is a kinda neat idea but nothing amazing. It basically is a mini-phone based advertisement scheme, but I suppose if you like paying retail prices at Best Buy this could actually be useful. Who knows, maybe they’ll start putting this app by default on all the Android phone’s they sell. Me personally, I’ll just wait until GameSpot makes a better app or just use Google as usual.
via Best Buy Entering the Android Marketplace | Android Apps.