Android or Apple: Battle Of The App Stores

This week saw an interesting twist in the ongoing battle between the mobile industry’s A Team  Android versus Apple.

Google launched an Android app builder tool, that looks to democratise app development by allowing anyone to build an app. Put simply, Google App Inventor for Android is designed for people without any programming skills.

It uses a simple user interface that allows those with no programming skills to drag and drop a series of building blocks, which can be used to store information, insert preprogrammed actions, and includes a simple way to make it work with GPS or Twitter etc.

Open Android

“The goal is to enable people to become creators, not just consumers, in this mobile world,” said Harold Abelson, a computer scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and leader of the project.

“We could only have done this because Android’s architecture is so open,” Abelson said. “These aren’t the slickest applications in the world, but they are ones ordinary people can make, often in a matter of minutes.”

Android does seem to be on something of a roll recently, as Android smartphones gained US market share in the last quarter, while its competition (Apple, RIM Blackberry, and Palm etc) all lost slightly. Indeed, Android was the only smartphone operating system to see its US subscriber percentage increase in the three-month period between February and May 2010, according to research firm comScore.

Microsoft, RIM Apple and Palm all lost share, but not a huge amount. That said, the arrival of the iPhone 4 during this quarter could shake things up a bit.

And it is clear that Apple is still the app market leader at the moment, by a long way. While the number of Android apps are thought to number around the 65,000 mark, this is compared to approximately 225,000 plus apps in the Apple Store.

Google Gamble?

Google has played something of a gamble here with this new development tool. In an effort to catch Apple in the app department, it has essentially thrown open the development gates. The concern here is that the Google App Inventor could flood the store with low quality apps. Indeed, some Android developers feel that Google’s hands-off approach and lack of management of its Android Market is actually hurting the company.

The alternative view is that this open approach could help Google broaden its app offerings, and allow for the creation of some really innovative app ideas.

Many people put Apple’s success down to control. It censors the App store, and vets all programs. But then again, Google also removes apps if it feels they break its developer terms and conditions.

Google is going to have a difficult juggling act to make sure its apps remain good. Does it opt for heavier policing and more controls, or will it continue to allow developers a reasonably free hand to explore their creative capabilities? Developers after all, tend to dislike overly strict controls. That said, control has not helped Apple back.

Conclusion

My belief is that neither approach is essentially wrong, and both approaches seem to be working, with a few minor grumbles and annoyances on both sides.

What the arrival of Google’s app building tool does show however, is there are two radically different business approaches. On the one side you have a more dictatorial environment, while the other has opted for a more free spirited approach.

It is a difference of principles, and for the momement at least, both seem to be working quite well.