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| Closed for business |
| By special contributor henderson101 on 2012-07-24 23:42:53 |
| "I read earlier this week about a developer who made their Android version free after the $1 game was extensively pirated. Stories like this come as no surprise, but the industry press rarely deals with the core problem - and nor does Google. [...] Whilst the aforementioned story about the Android game didn't surprise me, it did horrify me. Android is designed to be difficult to make money from, and the core issue is that it's open - with the corrosive mentality that surrounds such openness." |
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| RE: Comment by Radio |
| By lucas_maximus on 2012-07-25 09:28:35 |
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:facepalm: They made money and got bought by Google. The owner is laughing his way to the bank. Edited 2012-07-25 09:29 UTC |
 - Score: 4 |
| Maybe it isn't piracy, maybe it's just crappy apps |
| By r_a_trip on 2012-07-25 09:56:58 |
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It was a very interesting diatribe to read. It basically boils down to "iOS apps make more money then Android apps". The author seems to think that the App Store jail Apple has built has something to do with that. Maybe that is true, but people buying apple kit most of the time seem to be willing to spend more money on gadgets. So maybe that is why they also spend more on iOS apps. I'm using an Android phone. I've bought a handful of apps. I've looked at a few pirated titles, but that is more hassle than it's worth. Inconvenient download, inconvenient installation and no automatic updates. (Bought the titles afterwards.) But when I really look at my use of my phone, I just use it as an IM device and a mobile browser. Apps? Yeah, fun to download and install, but a.) I'm in the age bracket where I don't have a lot of time to spend idly on mini apps (not even looking at the time spent at work) and b.) a lot of (most?) apps really aren't that earth shattering. I think the last part is the real problem. As cool and "powerful" as todays smartphones are, they just aren't as useful as other computing platforms. Gaming platform? Too small, to constrained. Only good for "Angry Bird" style games and most of those games are played by adults on Facebook anyways. Target market - schoolkids, without payment means. Serious over 20 gamers have their PC rigs and their PS3's and Xboxes. Productivity? Too small, to constrained, to awkward for input. With the exception (maybe) of the Asus Transformer with dock, smartphones and tablets are but a shadow of a standard desktop computer. Ubuntu for Android doesn't count, because you transform the whole system in a regular desktop. Entertainment system? Unless the batterylife of smartphones improve dramatically, no go either. Watching movies on a smartphone (still too small, to constrained) or a tablet isn't all that when your battery drains faster than a shopaholics bank account. Listening to music is just the same. The apps themselves are more applets than apps (partly because of the system constraints). So far I've not seen anything killer. So why would people spend boatloads of cash on subpar apps? Or apps that could be useful, but are hampered by power consumption. When push comes to shove, a smartphone is still just a phone with some extra fancy capabilities. (Yes, I'm willing to take the dent in my geek cred ;) Maybe that is why we don't see a surge in mobile app millionaires. What these app developers currently have to sell is the equivalent of the $5 bargain bin at the cash register. From time to time you'll buy something that is in there, but it is not a regular shopping habit if you want durable, quality stuff. |
| - Score: 5 |
| RE[3]: No lost sales |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-07-25 09:59:48 |
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Android piracy is a real problem http://gamepolitics.com/2011/10/... As with pc gaming it has become the norm. Most people playing the games aren't paying for them. |
| - Score: 3 |
| RE: Comment |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-07-25 10:01:28 |
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> But mobile applications are dirt cheap and really easy to get. This is really fucked up. What possible motivation could these people have? It's just like pc gaming where dorks think they are "sticking it to the man" by not paying. Problem is that when piracy ratios get high enough it fucks up the market for everyone, including them. |
| - Score: 2 |
| RE: MS was built by piracy |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-07-25 10:04:38 |
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So? They also had plenty of legitimate customers and zero competition. Just because MS and Adobe can absorb some piracy doesn't mean that piracy is never destructive. Both MS and Adobe have always been able to rely on businesses to pay for legit copies. Windows is mostly a hidden cost to consumers. But for Android games piracy is the norm. Most people who play them aren't paying for them. http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/a... |
| - Score: 1 |
| RE: I live in a different world |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-07-25 10:11:01 |
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Hanging out with pc gamers is what changed my mind on piracy. I saw way too many who would drop $15 on take-out without thinking but when it came to games would only pay for their MMO subscription. Then you have the "I'm elite because I read a how-to" attitude where these guys actually think they are special for knowing how to pirate. |
| - Score: 3 |
| RE[3]: No lost sales |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-07-25 10:19:36 |
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Who is actually counting every pirated copy as a lost sale? I see developers complaining about high piracy rates and for good reason. Would all those Android pirates have paid for every game? No but they would have paid for some of them unless you want to tell me that they can afford a smartphone and data plan but not $1 games? You really think they would quit gaming? Of course they would not buy every game they pirated but they would buy some of them. Multiply that by a million pirates and you can see the amount of damage it does to Android when compared to the iPhone. The problem with pirates is that they aren't contributing to anyone. They don't think it is a big deal on an individual level but as a group they are large enough to distort the market. A healthy market has enough paying customers to sustain development while Android has millions of cheapskates who can't cough up a freaking dollar. Edited 2012-07-25 10:21 UTC |
| - Score: 3 |
| RE: Openness and Piracy, I don't see where the match up. |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-07-25 10:24:33 |
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> If that's the argument then the many pirated copies of Windows, Office, and Adobe Photoshop prove that the 'closed' model does not work. No that isn't the argument at all. Windows, Office and Photoshop are not sold on a closed platform but more importantly have plenty of legit customers to fund development. Android is overwhelmed with cheapskates who pirate $1 games http://gamepolitics.com/2011/10/... Open gaming platforms make piracy easier. That's just a fact of life. The PS3 would have been rife with piracy from day one if the games were naked ISOs loaded on a standard cpu. I'm sorry if nerds have such a hard time with this reality. |
| - Score: 2 |
| RE: Maybe it isn't piracy, maybe it's just crappy apps |
| By ze_jerkface on 2012-07-25 10:37:48 |
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Oh give me a break, so if Android all of a sudden had the same library as the iPhone then all these pirates would start paying for games? People pirate because they want free stuff. Why do so many nerds have such problems dealing with the reality of human nature? I've seen your excuse for pc games and funny that you can find high piracy rates for highly rated games like world of goo. It's not like pirates took a break from pirating to show their appreciation for the developer. You can also find low scoring MMOs with zero piracy because the game is handled server side. It has nothing to do with quality, pirates don't pick and choose. Only in some nerd rainbow fantasy world will pirates choose to buy based on ethics/openness/karma/quali ty/etc. We do not live in that world. |
| - Score: 1 |
| RE[2]: Maybe it isn't piracy, maybe it's just crappy apps |
| By Thom_Holwerda on 2012-07-25 10:54:04 |
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> People pirate because they want free stuff. Why do so many nerds have such problems dealing with the reality of human nature? Because I don't know anyone who pirates mobile applications. As I've said before, I'm 90% sure this is simply a case of the Google Play Store only offering paid applications in 31 countries. Interestingly, none of the few complaining developers release actual data, which automatically makes all sorts of red flags go up. It's all their word - and in the case of Dead Trigger, a very questionable word. I do science. Give me hard figures, and then we'll talk. Until then, this is all random conjecture with very little basis in fact. Edited 2012-07-25 10:54 UTC |
| - Score: 6 |
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