Android Thoughts: Is It Possible To Be Too Open?

"Google, which for years has touted its Android software as 'open,' has recently taken a much tighter grip over the software, proving once again that 'open' is a crock."

A lot of electrons have been spilled lately over the changes to the Android software agreement that handset manufacturers have to sign. Business Insider has a less-than-balanced article dealing with the situation, and thy aren't the only ones. All of this has prompted Andy Rubin himself to respond. One would hope that this would put it all to rest, but I'm sure it won't.

The funny thing is that the same people who cry "fragmentation" are the ones who scream and shout when Google does something to try to control the potential for fragmentation. Like it or not Google "owns" (in a development-sense) Android and it is good to see them taking responsibility for it. The truth is that developers and manufacturers will continue to be able to do whatever they want with the software, but someone needs to play the role of authority here, and Google has attempted to do just that with the changes they've made to the agreements.

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