- Apple has changed its policies to allow the use of cross-platform compilers like Flash to create iPhone apps.
- Apple is releasing the App Store Review Guidelines.
- Android's openness may have motivated Apple to change their policies.
- Unity was not that different from Flash, yet apps based on Unity were allowed in the app store.
- This is a big win for developers and consumers.
Apple has changed its policies opening the way for Flash apps. Another blogger says Android isn’t that open after all.
Apple has decided to change its policies on apps. You now use cross-platform compilers like Flash to create an iPhone app. They are even releasing the App Store Review Guidelines.
There are 2 opinions that I have and agree with. The first is that Android’s openness motivated Apple to change their minds. I have read many blogs from many developers simply quitting Apple development altogether due to their polices. The second is that Unity was not that different than Flash. Yet, apps based on Unity were allowed in the app store.
Overall, I think is a big win for developers and consumers.
TechCrunch’s MC Siegler has 2 interesting opinions on Android’s popularity. He says it is only popular because Android phones are on networks other than AT&T. People replied to him and said Android was popular due to its openness. He roundly disagrees with that opinion and says that carriers make Android more closed .
The Gartner group’s forecast for the smartphone market says that Android will finish the year as the second most popular.
I think only developers can really point to openness as a selling point of Android. It takes a very technically proficient person to understand Apple’s app store policies and how restrictive they were. The average person may not say openness and the ability to do this or that, but they will understand the problems associated with Apple’s policies. In the end, consumers are choosing Android for its openness without knowing it.
