The Android Market

As mentioned earlier, one of the main factors determining the success of a smartphone platform is
the applications that support it. It is clear from the success of the iPhone that applications play a
very vital role in determining whether a new platform swims or sinks. In addition, making these
applications accessible to the general user is extremely important.
As such, in August 2008, Google announced Android Market, an online application store for
Android devices, and made it available to users in October 2008. Using the Market application that
is pre installed on their Android device, users can simply download third-party applications directly
onto their devices. Both paid and free applications are supported on the Android Market, though
paid applications are available only to users in certain countries due to legal issues.
Similarly, in some countries, users can buy paid applications from the Android Market, but
developers cannot sell in that country. As an example, at the time of writing, users in India can buy
apps from the Android Market, but developers in India cannot sell apps on the Android Market.
The reverse may also be true; for example, users in South Korea cannot buy apps, but developers in
South Korea can sell apps on the Android Market.