Comments on: Google-Android Developers Rift Widens

By: Charles

Charles — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:25:14 +0000

Google: Their motto of “Do no evil” does NOT mean “do good”. “Doing good” is not their goal, their goal is to maximize profits, end of story.

By: James Kendrick

James Kendrick — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:25:28 +0000

By way of update, it’s been brought to my attention that the commercial apps mentioned that caused the dust-up are not distributed as part of the Android source code. This makes Kondik’s position much more tenuous, as he was evidently bundling them in with his ROMs. This whole thing is a lot more dicey than on the surface.

Google’s rep has definitely taken a black eye over this. There is no winner here as is usual in these cases. Just losers of different degrees.

By: Chopchurch

Chopchurch — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 10:27:31 +0000

Isn’t it entirely possible that this is exactly what Google wants? They needed a more robust and diverse developer community, and nothing focuses Open Source zealots like a large “faceless enemy”. This move doesn’t hurt Google it actually helps them, that’s why I laughed out loud when I saw the group’s announcement. Remember Google couldn’t openly ask for this to happen, they couldn’t even suggest it.

By: The Android/Cyanogen Dispute Takes Android in New Directions | google android os blog

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 06:44:50 +0000

[...] are not anti-Google, but pro-Android. You can read more about the Open Android Alliance here, and GigaOm also makes some good points in the aftermath of the Android/Cyanogen dispute. Who knows, maybe this initiative, the result of [...]

By: Jack Will

Jack Will — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 05:40:15 +0000

I bet Chrome OS will be more open than Android. Just look at the difference between chromium.org and the Android nonsense.

By: joyhaa

joyhaa — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:31:31 +0000

Just planned on using android for non-phone products, this mess leads to a serious reconsideration for our projects, plus, I’m really pissed off by what GOOG did.

By: Google to Android Developers — It’s Not All Open Source

Google to Android Developers — It’s Not All Open Source — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 22:46:42 +0000

[...] gave our buds at GigaOM this statement to clarify their position: The power of open source is that the community can shape it as they see [...]

By: macdad

macdad — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 21:15:33 +0000

Good luck with ATT – the MAJOR reason we never bought iPhones. Why do you think their data plan is any better?

By: Scott

Scott — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 20:04:30 +0000

I just boxed up my T-Mobile myTouch 3Gs and mailed them back. I was on my 15th day of the 20 day grace period. Just picked up a pair of iPhone 3GSs to replace them. Blows the “stock” Android ROM away by leaps and bounds.

Had Google kept their open-source promise, it would have been safe to keep the phones despite their shortcomings, bugs and performance issues. We had Cyanogen to thank for making them work so well. Not going to wait around and see what happens when paying so much for a data plan.

By: Mark Sigal

Mark Sigal — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:47:06 +0000

While I am TOTALLY sympathetic to Google on this one, perception has a way of becoming reality, and perception is that Google plays the open card when it serves their interests (namely, disrupting a proprietary, premium type of solution), the protector when it serves their interests (they need successful hardware OEMs to prove out the viability of their model) and proprietor when it serves their interests.

Easy to see how the Android mantra of being open yet leveraged, fragments for them as self-interest takes precedence over the good of the commons.

Mark

By: James Kendrick

James Kendrick — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:32:33 +0000

I suspect that Google has contracts with others involving the non-open source apps that dictate they can’t allow this sort of distribution. Often in these situations there are contractual liabilities that must be met. even if we all wish they wouldn’t do so.

By: Evan Ruff

Evan Ruff — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:07:28 +0000

I don’t understand what Google has to GAIN by limiting the exposure of Market and GMail/Cal/Contacts. I imagine there are even touchier IP issues with the Maps component, but Market and GMail feed users directly into Google’s pocket. While they don’t have to be Open Source, I don’t see any reason why they shouldn’t be “freely distributable”.

By: HereAndNow

HereAndNow — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 18:53:42 +0000

I think Google did the right thing.

I don’t think this is about Google’s apps, specifically. I think it is about Android IP, in general.

For example, HTC invested a lot of time & money, developing the HTC Sense interface, to differentiate their Android devices from their competitors. This is HTC’s IP. Should ROMs, with this IP, be distributed & installed on devices not authorized by HTC? I think the answer is no.

To me, this issue is simple: The pieces of Android that are free & open source are available for developers to change & distribute, however they want. The pieces that are not, are not.

By: travis

travis — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 18:01:11 +0000

I totally respect the idea that one shouldn’t be spreading other IP all over the place for free, but G’s response to this was totally absurd. If it was that big of an issue they should have either brought it up from the start of the root rom community–instead of waiting almost a full year, or they should have created apps from the start that would be open sourced and could be pushed to dev created roms without fear of those bs lawyers.

The dev community has done an incredible amount of work for G for free. We talk about our favorite platform to everyone, friends , family, etc, and get them interested in trying it out. Dev’s create apps and programs that they release for free on G’s market that create a tremendous buzz in the tech world.

I think G would find that if they totally embraced the concept of rooting phones, and even encouraged it, they would find themselves in a market in which they would be the only company doing so. Can you imagine the amount of people that would flock to Android if all was rooted and free? It’s possible, but the color of money blinds all companies, good and bad, and terrible decisions are based off the bottom line.