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Avoiding Apple Tax: How iOS Developers Can Bypass The 30% Fee

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There apparently is a disturbance in the iOS caused by Apple Execs at Cupertino (with Steve Jobs blessing of course).

In a bid to make the user experience “even better,” Apple is requiring that subscription services (like Amazon’s Kindle app or Pandora) provide in app purchasing to users which means Apple gets a 30% cut right off the top.

This rule wouldn’t be so bad if it were not for the fact that Apple is dictating (yes I said it!) that developers maintain the same price within the iOS ecosystem as they do upon other platforms.

Instead of cursing Steve Jobs, Cupertino and all things starting with “i,” here are several alternatives iOS developers can take in order to avoid Apple’s ridiculous fees without having to leave the iOS universe. [Read more…]

Originally posted on February 21, 2011 @ 3:35 pm

FTC Going After Android?

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The Federal Trade Commission apparently has some questions regarding Android’s in-app purchasing and is investigating Google regarding their latest feature.

“Let me assure you we will look closely at the current industry practice with respect to the marketing and delivering of these types of applications,” FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitzwrote to Rep. Edward Markey in a letter this week. After Markey and Sen. Amy Klobuchar requested that the FTC look into Google and Apple for their in-app purchase features, the agency set its inquiry into motion. (Android Apps)

With Android embracing carrier billing, the FTC is probably concerned about users getting scammed by third party developers (although truth be told they can always request a refund).

Both Google and Apple already have procedures in place to protect consumers just in case they get scammed, although with the FTC breathing down both their necks we may see stronger policies to protect consumers in the future.

Note: Surprisingly the FTC isn’t also going after RIM (who also offers in app purchasing for Blackberry users), although this could be due to the fact that RIM is head quartered in Canada (as opposed to the US) while Apple and Google are based within the America’s borders.

Originally posted on February 23, 2011 @ 1:23 pm

Verizon Gaining Windows Phone 7?

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After previously gaining Palm Pre 2 as well as the iPhone 4, it looks like Verizon will be adding Windows Phone 7 to their smartphone arsenal in their war against AT&T (the latter who embraced Windows Phone 7 months ago).

If you had any remaining doubts whether the HTC Trophy would be playing for Team Red, you can leave them at the door — a tipster just sent us a high-res version of the above image, and says it’s running the latest version of Windows Phone 7, complete with copy/paste support. (via Engadget)

Previously Verizon dismissed Windows Phone 7 as a serious contender claiming that the carrier didn’t need it as they saw the iPhone, Blackberry and Android smarphones as their flagship devices.

Despite Verizon’s attitude towards Windows Phone 7, it looks like the carrier is hedging their bets by including Microsoft’s smartphone just in case it becomes a sleeper hit.

Sadly Verizon has yet to reveal a time table as to when they plan to release Windows Phone 7 to the masses, although Microsoft is claiming in the first half of 2011 which could mean a summer release.

Truth be told Microsoft needs Verizon more than Verizon needs Windows Phone 7, as the former needs to boost consumer sales in order to challenge iOS as well as Android in the future.

Originally posted on February 28, 2011 @ 12:27 pm

Why Motorola’s Xoom Won’t Threaten The iPad

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After weeks of anticipation it looks like Android fans will finally have a worthy iPad contender from Motorola that can challenge Apple for tablet supremacy.

Unfortunately Motorola’s Xoom just made one major mistake that may convince consumers to overlook the Android tablet and instead choose iOS instead.

The first device to run Google’s new Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system, the Motorola XOOM will be available for purchase from Verizon Wireless for $599.99 with a new two-year customer agreement or $799.99 without a contract. Wireless 3G data service for the Motorola XOOM will begin at $20 monthly access for 1GB. The Motorola XOOM will be upgradeable to 4G LTE service at no additional charge in the second quarter of 2011. (via Android Central)

Note: Emphasis mine.

While the Xoom does look impressive and is cheaper than the iPad 3G (the latter which starts at $629), the fact that you have to sign up with a 2 year contract will probably be a turn off to the masses (who may already have a contract via their smartphone).

Although users can pick up the Xoom for about $800 contract free, that price range will put it out of reach for the masses who may simply opt for a less expensive Wifi iPad instead.

With iPad 2.0 expected to debut this summer, Motorola better hope that Apple doesn’t launch a less expensive iPad as that could result in a lot of Xoom tablets rotting away in ware houses over the summer.

Originally posted on February 22, 2011 @ 7:00 pm

Windows Phone 7 Embraces IE9, Attacks iPad?

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It looks like Microsoft has announced a Valentine’s gift for Windows Phone 7 fans which should make it easier for them to view the web without envying their iOS friends.

As far as iOS rivals go however, Microsoft had a few words regarding the browsers of their competitors.

As a result, when you compare different browsers side by side using official W3C standards tests, for example here, you can expect very similar results for IE9 on Windows Phone and the Windows desktop. […]

Our approach to sharing code involves using the same engine and the same highly-rated SmartScreen services. Using different engines—even subtly different engines—results in making developers do a lot more work and re-work to accommodate the differences. Articles like The WebKit Lie and the Future of Web Standards and iPad is the new IE6 reflect the problems in fragmented nightly builds and forks. (Official IE Blog)

Although it’s good to see Microsoft finally release a decent browser upon Windows Phone 7, they may want to hold off on attacking the iPad until the company can come out with a superior browsing experience (as IE on Windows Phone 7 is not exactly that great).

Later on in their post Microsoft did announce support for HTML5 which should make it easier to use mobile sites on the go (like Weebly and Tumblr) without having to fire up the notebook.

(Image via Top Tech Reviews)

Originally posted on February 14, 2011 @ 3:29 pm