[clug] Android in the Business Press

[steve jenkin]

Michael Still wrote on 13/05/10 6:05 PM:
> steve jenkin quoted an article:
> 
>> Publishers who are hoping Apple’s consumer-pays system supplants
>> Google’s “everything is free” model had a nasty setback this week:
>> Google’s Android operating system for mobile smartphones passed Apple’s
>> iPhone in US market share.


I read "Apple’s consumer-pays system" to be referring to the "wonderful
iTunes payment system", not about the O/S or hardware (or phone plan).

A piece I snipped follows, but I don't think it alters your comment,
he's just talking about revenues from Ads (Google's big game changer):

"But in 2010, the game is different. Publishers of movies, music,
journalism and books, and just about everything else, are keen to start
charging their customers, having discovered that online advertising
alone won’t sustain them in the manner to which they had become accustomed."

I posted this piece because I thought it was very pro-FOSS and Google in
particular. My reading of Kohler's comments was that Apple has *twice*
peaked early with "its design-based system of locked hardware and
software" vs "open platform" with the first time being the IBM PC +
Microsoft (the hardware platform became 'open', and the O/S was bundled
and available most everywhere, despite their over pricing and predatory
marketing, to the consumer it was 'standard' and effectively 'free' -
until they got to pay maintenance and security taxes).

And this time round, Apple is pitting it's "locked in everything" model
against Android and Google.

I like that iPhone is 21% vs Android 28%, with Blackberry 36% and
falling (into oblivion?)...


> The author of the article is surely confused. The cost of the phone
> operating system is absorbed by the manufacturer. There isn't any
> discernible difference to your average phone consumer given both options
> retail for about the same price. Additionally, both have paid and free
> apps, so its not like consumers refuse to pay money for applications run
> on an open source phone.

Nope, not like that: Spot on.


> I'd be interested in a survey of the percentage of iPhones which are
> jail broken on the other hand -- that's got to be an indicator of people
> who like to tinker with products they purchase.

I think that underlines Kohler's point: *open platform* is what
customers want.


> 
> Mikal


cheers
s


-- 
Steve Jenkin, Info Tech, Systems and Design Specialist.
0412 786 915 (+61 412 786 915)
PO Box 48, Kippax ACT 2615, AUSTRALIA

sjenkin at canb.auug.org.au http://members.tip.net.au/~sjenkin