Both companies are trying to protect the user from malware and themselves from lawsuits. When you can successfully run a corp. with 20,000 employees, and meet payroll every week, then you may be qualified to speak about who, or what is evil in business.

You do not own anything there (that is unless you coded it yourself or bought the company).

Take ZOHO, for an example… Has Google in any way stopped them from using their technologies with ZOHO? ZOHO is a direct competitor to Google, one that has superior products IMHO and yet they still have Gears integration, maps, et all.

There’s an episode of CrankyGeeks (one of the most recent ones) that has a guy from Google saying that with Android you will get several warnings about the things this or that app will do, once you OK them you are free to use them anyway.

Maybe we should be holding this conversation once we scrutinize the developer distribution agreement instead of defaulting to “ZOMG, Big Brother”…

It’s a liability thing. They are the distributors of the stuff that comes from the app market, and have to maintain some solid standards in order to protect them from liability. Once you leave them, you’re on your own. Nothing like the Apple sandbox.

Apple is still evil. Google is not evil yet.

I can’t believe that phone consumers would put up with “Big Brother” doing anything like this.

While it might be explained as protecting the consumer, I’d rather just get a message from the cell provider that a certain application is a threat and that I should remove it or bring it to their store for removal. That message should also have a checkbox allowing me to disregard it and not be bothered again about it for a number of days chosen by the consumer right then or a never again choice.

If there was software on the phone that threatened the cellphone company’s services or the user agreement then the phone ought to display a message that can be checked to disregard permanently or a certain number of days. Anyhow as long as that software remains on the phone then the customer’s cell service would not be available however the phone’s software would be. It would be blocked at the cell tower from making calls.

Imagine buying a car that would not unlock it’s gas flap unless you purchased gasoline from certain gas station brands. Imagine a car whose computer would not allow the car to be driven or started with aftermarket repair parts on it. Imagine a car that came with wheels that only fit tires from the manufacturer of the car.

That’s the kind of stuff that the cell providers, ISPs, and hardware manufacturers do sometimes through their marketing games. Note to those companies: I am the customer and I pay your bills. Don’t forget who is in control here.