4 ms·

This is a ridiculous article. It's the same as saying that the airline industry is having a the rough time it currently has because people have to provide their

This is a ridiculous article. It's the same as saying that the airline industry is having a the rough time it currently has because people have to provide their bank account details when they book a flight as opposed to adding the booking fee to the ISP bill. On the Android Market, of course, you only have to provide your card details the first time you purchase something. I can't possibly believe that having to provide some means of payment deters any serious customer (that is, someone who's prepared to pay). I'm an Android fan. I'd like to see Android getting better so criticism is more than welcome but how about focusing on the real weaknesses (there are a lot of them) as opposed to FUD and utter nonsense?

mey 17y ago
Skipping the article, but care to point out some of the more glaring actual android issues?
neilk 17y ago
> I can't possibly believe that having to provide some means of payment deters any serious customer (that is, someone who's prepared to pay). The phenomenon of users giving up somewhere after cilcking "buy" is called "cart abandonment". Rates of 50-70% are common. http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007156 http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007156 I think you are under the impression that consumers make irrevocable buying decisions after careful consideration, and then see the process through to the end. That isn't even true of major purchases like cars or homes, let alone lifestyle purchases like smartphone apps. Anything can deter that sort of purchase, even the inconvenience of getting up to find the credit card. The step of entering payment instrument information is one of the big pain points. A lot of people have already gone through that wih Amazon and iTunes, not so much for Google Checkout. There could be a plausible case that Google can leapfrog the competition by using ISP billing.
- mey 17y ago
  Two notes against ISP billing, not all Android devices are or will be cell phones provided by a carrier, and when doing ISP billing, as a developer you tend to get paid 3-9 months out from when the customer bought the product because of the multiple stages of financial transfers. (Seen this with BREW previously)
- teilo 17y ago
  Purchasing an app on an Android phone is a distinctly different experience than purchasing your typical shopping cart product online. "Cart abandonment" is just not a significant factor in the Marketplace. You enter your card ONCE, and from that moment forward, the process of buying an app is nearly identical with the iPhone (UI aside).

mey 17y ago

Skipping the article, but care to point out some of the more glaring actual android issues?

neilk 17y ago

> I can't possibly believe that having to provide some means of payment deters any serious customer (that is, someone who's prepared to pay). The phenomenon of users giving up somewhere after cilcking "buy" is called "cart abandonment". Rates of 50-70% are common. http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007156 http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007156 I think you are under the impression that consumers make irrevocable buying decisions after careful consideration, and then see the process through to the end. That isn't even true of major purchases like cars or homes, let alone lifestyle purchases like smartphone apps. Anything can deter that sort of purchase, even the inconvenience of getting up to find the credit card. The step of entering payment instrument information is one of the big pain points. A lot of people have already gone through that wih Amazon and iTunes, not so much for Google Checkout. There could be a plausible case that Google can leapfrog the competition by using ISP billing.

mey 17y ago
Two notes against ISP billing, not all Android devices are or will be cell phones provided by a carrier, and when doing ISP billing, as a developer you tend to get paid 3-9 months out from when the customer bought the product because of the multiple stages of financial transfers. (Seen this with BREW previously)
teilo 17y ago
Purchasing an app on an Android phone is a distinctly different experience than purchasing your typical shopping cart product online. "Cart abandonment" is just not a significant factor in the Marketplace. You enter your card ONCE, and from that moment forward, the process of buying an app is nearly identical with the iPhone (UI aside).