Czech GAME developer Madfinger caused controversy in the gaming world after turning it's game Dead Trigger from a paid into a free app on the Google Play Store this week. Earlier this month, the game was released for $0.99, but users of Android devices can download it for free now. According to Madfinger, the reason for the price drop is the unbelievably high piracy rate on Android devices. The iOS version of Dead Trigger remains $0.99. 

Madfinger is not the first developer that faces problems with piracy on Android devices. Sports Interactive, the developer of Football Manager, sees a 90% piracy rate on Android. Miles Jacobsen of Sports Interactive says there's no functioning copy protection on the platform currently, so it's pretty easy for someone to get games working for free. "The platform is also very popular in some countries where there's a larger piracy problem than in others." he says. For example, Korean developer Com2uS states that it has seen piracy rates of even 98%. 

However, not every Android developer has problems with piracy on Android. A survey from research and advisory firm Yankee Group and Skyhook shows that 27% of the Android developers see piracy as a huge problem and 26% see it as somewhat of a problem. This suggests that 47% doesn't see it as a problem or has no opinion about the matter. Though, 53% of the developer respondents say Google is too slack in its Android Market policies. 

It seems that Google is already working on a better copy protection for Android apps. The Android Developers Blog states that paid apps in Google Play will be encrypted with a device-specific key before they are delivered and stored on the device. "We know you work hard building your apps. We work hard to protect your investment." Hopefully, Google's investments will lead to a healthier game market for Android.

Source: The Guardian

By: Marjolein van der Heide