• Wired, Thursday, September 25, 2008 12 PM

Google's Android Market looks set to become the gathering place of Apple App Store rejects, Wired reports. One such convert is developer Alex Sokirynsky, who gained widespread attention when Apple rejected his application "Podcaster" for allegedly trying to duplicate the Apple's iTunes service. In a blog post, Sokirynsky later said he would now develop for Google's Android, accusing Apple of taking "the coward's way out" by disabling features in his developers' portal. "This seems like a childish move for a company that has been proving such high-quality service and products in the past."

However, even as developers struggle with the App Store's "arbitrary and restrictive" policies, programmers tell Wired that Android is no walk in the park, either. As developer Fraser Speirs points out, "The Android software package is a known quantity now, but the hardware ecosystem is not. It's not clear to me that every phone running Android will be just like the HTC G1: There may be phones with touch screen and those without. I think that whole part of the Android story is really unclear right now."

As Nullriver CEO Adam Dann, another App Store reject, sees it, there are pluses and minuses to developing for both Android and the App Store. Android, the more open platform, promotes collaboration and innovation, but you'll definitely "end up with a lot of garbage." The App Store's obvious benefit is quality control and the ability to make a lot of money, but Apple's downfall is "dictatorship."

Read the whole story at Wired »