Why does it come to mind? What it so different between Grooveshark and Spotify that Spotify is on the AppStore but Grooveshark can't be?
I see their iPhone application page saying they can't be on the AppStore, but no explanation as to why they can't be (and no, "Apple is unwilling to work with Grooveshark to approve our application." is not an explanation) and the blog post announcement does not provide any more information. The only mention I found is an other, older blog post saying the following:
> Earlier this afternoon, Apple sent us a letter notifying us that, due to a complaint they received from Universal Music Group UK
Apple's behavior seems logical and sensible here as the "gatekeeper" of their store, it's not their job to resolve trouble between UMG and Grooveshark.
And again, Spotify was still in the AppStore last time I checked, so what Grooveshark's app is not, in and of itself, "a [...] killer apps there which would never make it to the AppStore."
It comes to mind because I really wanted Grooveshark on my iPhone and would have paid for it but it's not there.
(Except by jailbreaking and I'm not willing to do that)
Apple's behavior seems logical and sensible here as the "gatekeeper" of their store, it's not their job to resolve trouble between UMG and Grooveshark.
They're already trying to resolve trouble by doing what UMG wanted.
In any case, we could nitpick over that point for hours.
And again, Spotify was still in the AppStore last time I checked, so what Grooveshark's app is not, in and of itself, "a [...] killer apps there which would never make it to the AppStore."
Seriously? Last time I checked, Spotify was only available in about 7 countries. (Last time being 5 minutes ago).
I don't see how you could even compare the two services. They work differently.
In any case, my comment wasn't specifically about Grooveshark, rather, to point out that there's a whole class of apps that people may want but would never be available on the App Store for various reasons (legitimate or otherwise) but will be available on Android.
> Seriously? Last time I checked, Spotify was only available in about 7 countries. (Last time being 5 minutes ago). I don't see how you could even compare the two services. They work differently.
I asked how different they were, because I can't see it apart from Grooveshark's ignoring of IP (which is very much the root of them having been evicted from the AppStore until their resolve the situation). Which is I fear a very debatable "feature".
> In any case, my comment wasn't specifically about Grooveshark, rather, to point out that there's a whole class of apps that people may want but would never be available on the App Store for various reasons (legitimate or otherwise) but will be available on Android.
You specifically pointed out to Grooveshark as an example of that kind of applications. It's not.
It's not available on iOS, and as far as I can tell, can't be. I would actually love to get an iPhone because the hardware is so amazing and software is so polished (for the most part... notifications, I'm looking at you), but given the choice between polish and control, I choose control. At least in this case.
So, to answer the question in the GGGGP: yeah, the Android ecosystem is awesome.
To be clear, that wasn't my example, and I took your rejection of his example as a rejection of his assertion.
And I'm still not clear on your stance. So, you don't deny that there are a whole class of applications that are possible on Android that aren't on iOS. Does that mean you agree?
But. You don't believe this makes the Android ecosystem awesome.
You also, marginally relatedly, believe that the prevalence of "IP theft" on the Android ecosystem detracts from its awesomeness?
Do I have that right?
Personally, I don't think "IP theft" is a very good characterization of copyright (or trademark, in this case) infringement. But I suppose that's a whole nother debate.
Also, though, from what I can tell, this app doesn't directly take any images from Instapaper. It's an uppercase "I" in a generic block serif on a gray background. I think it's debatable whether this is a trademark infringement?
How about the "Terms of Use" that say "Apps and other products and services may not use Instapaper’s name, logos, or other trademarks in their titles or logos, or in any way that implies endorsement, sponsorship, or false association with Instapaper"?
[1] https://market.android.com/details?id=org.hijava.instapaper