By We’ve gotten another Email from the Android Market Support Team, led by Eric Chu, outlining potentially exciting updates to the Android Market. I say “potential” because they are only exciting if you live in one of the following countries:
- Sweden
- Denmark
- Norway
- Belgium
- Greece
- Hong Kong
- Taiwan
- Japan
Developers can now target these locations for FREE applications using check boxes in their Application Publisher panel on Android.com.
Please note that these markets do not yet have Android devices but we expect them to become available soon.
So congratulations to Android fans in the above countries, the days are numbered before you’ll be able to purchase an Android phone and enjoy all the luxuries of the world’s #1 mobile OS!
What’s cool about Denmark, is that the law limits mobile phone contracts at 6 months, cause I hate being tied up for 2 years on a mobile phone, even if it’s running the Android OS which is the worlds best embedded OS.
The HTC Magic and Samsung Galaxy just aren’t awesome enough in terms of hardware features that they have, especially not in terms of screen resolution, processing power and multimedia features.
Though there will be 20 different Android products available including the Archos Android device in the next few months. So I look forward to $200 or $150 Android devices being available without any need to sign any long term mobile service contracts.
In Denmark we have 10GB cap on HSDPA data services with a SIM card for about $15 per month. I have no need for voice and SMS packages! My Android device should do everything on a monthly $15 Data package including VOIP and IM features!
Basically an unlocked Android device branded “with Google”, thus totally open to any third party applications being installed, should sell starting at $150 unlocked with no contracts required. And work on any $15 per month 10GB HSDPA data package which should also not have any data filtering restrictions be it for VOIP, video streaming, webradio streaming or any other data intensive data applications.
These upcoming Android deals have nothing to do with the current US Android and iPhone contracts that forces the consumer to pay over $1500 during the 2 years of that contract.
Guys, I don’t own an Android phone yet, but I’m very interested in getting one… But what is all this about the Android Market country availability?
If I buy an Android phone, and my country isn’t listed as available under Android Market, does that mean I can’t access it on my phone at all? or I simply can’t buy paid apps? Would I still be able to download free software?
There are ways to access the market even if youre not in one of these countries. I think it might require rooting youre phone though….
Sorry, above comment was actually about paying for applications. I’m not sure about accessing free apps targeted for different countries, but Im guessing it is possible.
You’ll be able to access all free apps that were published for “all current and future countries”. I would guess that’s well over 90% of all free apps on the Android Market.
Paid apps probably won’t be available since you’d need a Checkout account with a credit card issued in one of the supported countries.
Sweden already has HTC Magic available!
Yay, Norway is on the list!
This evening, the market app suddenly showed a new item in the menu that allows people in Sweden (like myself) and probably other countries listed above to finally start purchasing paid apps. Unfortunately, the lists are currently empty (which i suspect will change soon ;-))
//D
Hong Kong is not a “country”
wiki:
“Hong Kong (Chinese: 香港), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China,[6] is a largely self-governing [7] territory of the People’s Republic of China (PRC)”
@hey you – actually it is a country. Google just purchased it and is relocating their headquarters there and renaming it “Hoongle Koongle”
11. LOL
As for paid apps in the market, it suddenly dissapeared again (strange?!). Not that it contained anything at all, but still ;-)
So that´s why only ‘free’ aps are showing in ‘my’ Market place, and I cannot buy…What a shame. And I don’t get it. At web shops I can buy from almost anywhere in the world, but when it somes to Android I cannot?
Sigh..
when can u provide android market in the philippines because i have mytouch 3g T-mobile but i cannot use it because of android. Please send an email to [email protected] for your answer.
thank you.
Hope to hear for your soon.
let me know when you have Thai language !
I bought an Android phone on the strength of Google’s reputation only to discover that neither is the Android Market accessible here nor is there any language support for Arabic/Farsi.
I thought the United States was meant to be allowing Iranians to have access to communications technology (Google Talk etc) as part of it’s policy towards the country. Has Android not yet got the message? You guys are losing out to your competitors here – and it’s a big market. Hurry up Android and give us access to Apps and full Farsi language support.
FYI, Taiwan and Hong Kong have had android phones since last year. HTC is a Taiwanese company so they hit very quickly in Asia Pacific.
Motorola Milestone was available from late 2009.
Over a year now since these “big news” and nothing have happened.
Still waiting.
I really don’t understand why Google only approved Japan – 1 Asia country out of 13 countries to sell priced application. Hong Kong as 1 of the 3 places to initially lauch Nexus One, can only find free application but not priced application in the Market Place. Google should have speed up to put more place into the approved country list in order to pace with other smart phone. Android user is not only located in those 13 countries, but worldwide with rapid growth.
lol…I think i will die before they support my country!
EGYPT!! though we have more than 20,000,000 of mobile users! which means a potential market to sell more phones that uses android! but! what shall we say! its a game and it happens only for the countries that comes to the leaders favors…Eric! DUH!!!
yeah one world, one race!!! a lot of since fiction in real life these days!