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iOS allows five devices to share paid apps, why not Android?

Vance

Android Enthusiast
Oct 28, 2009
561
55
In almost every area, Android trumps iOS, but there is one significant advantage of iOS for families: you only have to pay ONCE for an app, then all of your family's phones/devices can use it. With Android, I have to pay for the app three times for myself, my wife and my daughter.

I know the reason is that each phone has a different account for purchases, but if they want to match iOS on this one, they could just let up to five accounts link together in a family for this purpose.

I believe in supporting developers (and regularly upgrade to a pay version solely for that purpose), but the advantage DOES go to iOS here.
 
In almost every area, Android trumps iOS, but there is one significant advantage of iOS for families: you only have to pay ONCE for an app, then all of your family's phones/devices can use it. With Android, I have to pay for the app three times for myself, my wife and my daughter.

I know the reason is that each phone has a different account for purchases, but if they want to match iOS on this one, they could just let up to five accounts link together in a family for this purpose.

I believe in supporting developers (and regularly upgrade to a pay version solely for that purpose), but the advantage DOES go to iOS here.

Yes, the advantage is with iOS. Thanks for sharing.
 
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With Apple's stranglehold on the app and the draconian developer agreements, Apple can dictate a universal EULA for apps. If you read the App Store EULA paragraph "a." states your rights to install the app on any iDevice that you own or control. See:

Apple - Legal - Licensed Application End User License Agreement

So if I hand you my iPod, for a brief period, you control it. Does that give you permission to install the app?

I believe in supporting developers (and regularly upgrade to a pay version solely for that purpose), but the advantage DOES go to iOS here.

Technically the advantage is Apple's and the consumer at the expense of the developer. Now, if the developer is fine with that arrangement, then it's cool. Unfortunately, the developer doesn't get ...um, what's that word again? Oh yeah ... a choice.
 
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Palmetto: You seemed to have missed the part where I not only point out the downside of Android, but a possible way Android can catch up: the linking of accounts.

To further the idea, I recognize that the problem is that iOS has a specific account for payment which has nothing to do with mail, calendars, etc, which need to be user-specific. And, just allowing people to link gmail accounts could be abused with any five buddies doing this just to get free apps (rather than in a family situation). So, a solution to this could be to require the linked gmail accounts to associated with the same phone bill, and this is where a carrier-specific app store, like the new Verizon app store, could distinguish itself. All the devices on a single phone account can share apps bought by any of the others on that phone account, regardless of gmail login.
 
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With Apple's stranglehold on the app and the draconian developer agreements, Apple can dictate a universal EULA for apps. If you read the App Store EULA paragraph "a." states your rights to install the app on any iDevice that you own or control. See:

Apple - Legal - Licensed Application End User License Agreement

So if I hand you my iPod, for a brief period, you control it. Does that give you permission to install the app?



Technically the advantage is Apple's and the consumer at the expense of the developer. Now, if the developer is fine with that arrangement, then it's cool. Unfortunately, the developer doesn't get ...um, what's that word again? Oh yeah ... a choice.

Agreed, but the benefit to the developer of such an arrangement is greater sales. I know that there are apps that I think are too expensive for my phone, but if I could share it with my wife and daughter (as with iOS), then I would buy it. That is a sale the developer would get that they are now losing.

I think the developer SHOULD have a choice, unlike with Apple, but right now they equally don't have a choice to allow for such sharing. Maybe if a store like a Verizon store allows for that among family members on one phone bill, then the developer would then have the choice of selling on that store with such an arrangement or not.
 
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Agreed, but the benefit to the developer of such an arrangement is greater sales. I know that there are apps that I think are too expensive for my phone, but if I could share it with my wife and daughter (as with iOS), then I would buy it. That is a sale the developer would get that they are now losing.

Understood, but the all-or-nothing paradigm does not bear out in a free market. That is simply the extreme end of the spectrum with the developer missing out on two additional revenue opportunities on the other end.

I think the developer SHOULD have a choice, unlike with Apple, but right now they equally don't have a choice to allow for such sharing. Maybe if a store like a Verizon store allows for that among family members on one phone bill, then the developer would then have the choice of selling on that store with such an arrangement or not.

At this point I think it's more a matter of the mechanics than the inclination. iTunes is the holder of the license allowing any iDevice plugged into that installation access to the app. The market, OTOH ties the license to the Google account which would require Google the market or the developer (or all three) to keep track of the licences permitted. I wouldn't mind seeing "family" apps, but i don't mind the nominal fees for the good ones, either. Really, we're not talking even $50 here and usually it's under $10.
 
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i think what needs to be done is some way to merge gmail accounts on a single device for market use. I have 3 main gmail accounts on my phone, and have purchased different apps on all accounts, there needs to be a way for my licenses to transfer between accounts. this would be awesome as it would allow for a centralized "family account" for app purchases to be shared.
 
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Agreed, lunatic, it is not a major cost issue, just an annoyance and a gripe. There are very few apps this would apply to in any case.

But, I could see this being a selling point of the new Verizon app store, a way to distinguish itself since it DOES have the exact information which could make it work logistically: which gmail accounts are associated together on one phone bill. And, since the payment is going to be by phone bill anyway, this seems like a natural fit.

So, Verizon says "don't buy that app on the normal Android Market! If you buy it here on OUR app store, and then later add another Android phone to your Verizon account, you can download the app for free on that phone as well!"

gallandof, I agree, and if you restrict it to one payment source, you limit the folks who would game the system by just adding friends since they would have to get paid back all the time!
 
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At this point I think it's more a matter of the mechanics than the inclination. iTunes is the holder of the license allowing any iDevice plugged into that installation access to the app. The market, OTOH ties the license to the Google account which would require Google the market or the developer (or all three) to keep track of the licences permitted. I wouldn't mind seeing "family" apps, but i don't mind the nominal fees for the good ones, either. Really, we're not talking even $50 here and usually it's under $10.

The Google account itself needs to change then. Google needs an "iTunes", where that particular gmail account is the holder. Then any device that the gmail account user connects will have the same rights to software.

How about gTunes?

Google can even start selling MP3s if they want.
 
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Palmetto, I think that is already the case. You can have multiple devices associated with a single gmail and then load paid apps onto all of them without extra charge. So, if I went and got a Galaxy Tab, using my existing gmail account, I could load those apps on freely. But, the problem arises when you have multiple gmail accounts in a family.

But, I really do like the idea of a better, full service app/music/video store, and I hope Amazon follows through with their plans to do this.
 
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