Apps are NOT free to create. They require:
- Computers, Software & associated licences
- Time. Skilled staff's working hours
- Testing devices
- Publishing & Internet costs
- Optionally Servers & Promotional/Ads costs
Not different than creating a pizza. And like they say: "There is no free lunch, nor free pizza".
From an HONEST developer:
Unlike pizzas, the first app copy cost thousands of $$ to engineer but doesn't need to be re-created for each user. Instead, a copy is used, and the users share the developement cost by paying a licence for each copy. The more users it is shared with, the lower the user cost can be.
The user knows exactly how much he spend for it.
From OTHER developers:
Users are made to believe the app is "free, forever!" in exchange for a small inconvenience like advertising, which is, but only partially, true.
There are hidden costs, indirect, not just once but every single day, and often whether the users uses the app or not.
The user has no idea of those hidden costs.
"Free" apps usually don't just come with advertising code, but also "analytics" and other spyware, either hidden or disguised.
What they all have in common is they suck real money from the user in the following ways:
- Processing power: Constantly using your processor and intercepting events like sharing, photo taking, messaging, etc... reduce the number of apps you can use and push the user to buy a new phone with bigger memory.
- Storage use: Copying user data reduce the storage available and push the user to buy a memory card.
- Internet: All this data is transmitted up to THOUSANDS TIMES per day to servers on the internet which cost most of the user data plan.
- Battery: All this activity reduces the battery life by about half which often incur high replacement costs.
In conclusion, using most "free" apps cost $0 upfront, but 2 times more every month and 2 times more on hardware.
Advertising code is itself spyware. It doesn't just display ads but has first to spy on users to find out what he likes most (Personalized ads).
All this personal data is not just used for advertising but collected, analysed, linked to a user's profile combined from multiple corporations and sent to "agencies" which will then pursue the user if, for example, a Soni song on his your phone hasn't been bought from Aie-Tune.
That can cost a lot more than a licence!
Private data is also scrapped and sold to about anyone who's willing to pay for it. That include all kinds of individuals or corporations you could rightly consider "Evil".
If you don't pay for an app, you're the product. You don't own it, you're being milked and spied on.
If the price is fair, use paid apps, but still verify the behaviour.
Use a firewall to check & prevent an app sending data to the internet.
Use monitoring tools.
Check suspicious permissions, like start at boot, read contacts, etc...
Do not use apps that require 3rd party "Services". Obviously.
Yes, there are some, written by individuals who do not program for a living and kindly decided to put their app in the public domain.
Some older versions of open source software before they were taken over by "agencies".
Some older versions of commercial software before they were taken over by corporations.
Those apps are carefully hidden from searches or app stores.
What you'll find mostly are:
- Products from an empire of conglomerates and agencies which have poisoned both the apps and the OSes they run on.
- Independant developpers who, if they want to survive, are practically forced to use ads & spyware from this empire.
Saubers CLEANWARE apps are paid apps & do not include any ads or spyware. You can verify that using apps like Netguard & Process View.
Until you get a licence, they are free to use because they have features limitations and their purpose is to try-before-you-buy.
As they are not time limited, if you can live with the limitations, they are truly free forever, and also protect your privacy, without any catch.
Should we publish an app with ads, that would not be a CLEANWARE app. Consider it as a google app.
That will, unfortunately, certainly happen in the future :(
Apps that are & will always be CLEANWARE:
PrivateCam, AnT, MyStuff, FOTO, POM, Bonk, BS, Alpha2, Icom
Think you've got a choice ?
When all comes from the same shop
"Don't be evil" part 1
Google's true origins
"Don't be evil" part 2
Google's Bluetooth