Android is usually considered open compared to iOS because developers can distribute software directly to consumers, without permission from a third party.
Source code licensing is a different topic.
Source code licensing is a different topic.
"Before Apple's app store most software was distributed directly to customers."
Most discussions I see on the net these days are about free markets vs privately regulated markets. Windows and Android and Mac OS X belong to the former, while iOS and the XBox to the latter.
Should people provide products and services to other people, maybe with some government regulation? Or should a few private companies control and regulate the distribution? Would the world be a better or worse place when Microsoft had the power to prevent the distribution of Web Browsers?