Developer banned from Andriod's open marketplace. "Open" platform?

These questions should (rightly) be raised about the Market.

But calling into question the openness of the platform itself may not be the right approach, because anyone can distribute any APK just like anyone can distribute an EXE or DMG (or, for that matter, a Windows Mobile or BlackBerry application binary). It seems that with the proliferation of the App Store and its exclusivity, people have forgotten that on every other major platform, there -are- ways to avoid carrier limitations through other distribution channels.

And if I remember the clause in question correctly, the Android 'kill-switch' only applies to applications downloaded through the Market (as it is only found in the Market TOS and specifically applies only to the Market Developer Distribution Agreement).

I really wish more people would speak to the ability to distribute your app as you wish on other platforms, and not talk about the BlackBerry App World, Windows Marketplace for Mobile or Android Market as if they were the only possible way to distribute an application.

This, to me, seems like a case of people having unrealistic expectations.

I think my generation (under 30) has forgotten that sometimes you have to work within the system to beat it. Android is a huge step in the right direction and the fact that carriers are letting it on their network at all is a big win.

But, for now, the carriers still run the show. And while I hate that fact I realize it’s the reality and forgive Google for not wanting to get in a war with providers over tethering. A war that would risk getting them booted off the network entirely.

Right now Android needs to be given time to grow and get some market share (and with it some leverage). Once it gets that it can start to dictate terms (look at Apple and AT&T)

Has google actually claimed the marketplace to be open? I haven't heard them do so, but I may well have missed something where they did.

But if not, I don't see what the issue is. Unlike Apple's app store, the Android app store is not the only distribution channel. It is still an open platform, IMHO.

EDIT: While I was writing this comment, BenFeldman and TomOfTTB made my point better than I did.

We develop mobile voip software. In this regard, I tried to approach Android developers for a number of times (through their dev forum, as well as through some guys close to Google) to publish API for adding audio codecs and full-duplex audio (to let us develop these missing parts). Although my requests were seconded by many other ppl, no any response followed. Android is closed proprietary stuff. Dixi.

"Open" doesn't mean anything goes - if you have an "open" marketplace in a town where anyone can sell, if someone is antisocial then they could be banned (not of course referring to what happened here, but banning does not cancel out open-ness automatically).