How Google is Pushing Android for Developers

Posted 04/19/2010 at 2:41pm | by Ryan Whitwam

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It's no secret that Apple and Google take different approaches to managing content in their respective smartphone app stores. Apple is notoriously hard-edged, rejecting apps seemingly on a whim. Google on the other hand, takes a more laissez faire approach where anyone can post their app to the Android Market. An iPhone developer recently contacted David Pogue of The New York Times with a story that exemplifies the difference to the nth degree.

According to the dev of Texts From Last Night for the iPhone, he was contacted out of the blue by a Google employee. The Google rep wanted to "open the lines of communication" should the developer ever want to port his app to Android. They even offered to give him a free Nexus One no questions asked. "It shows that Google is actively recruiting developers to their platform, using the enticements of free hardware and open communication," said the dev.

What's more interesting is the completely different response he has gotten from Apple. The app was rejected time after time for three months, before making it into the store. Despite the app's high popularity, the developer still has no relationship with anyone at Apple. The two approaches couldn't be more different, but which is the winning strategy?