Apple Inc. v. Amazon.Com, Inc.

Filing 20

Declaration of John Wright in Support of 18 MOTION for Preliminary Injunction NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION FOR PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION filed byApple Inc.. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A, # 2 Exhibit B, # 3 Exhibit C)(Related document(s) 18 ) (Eberhart, David) (Filed on 4/13/2011)

EXHIBIT C
TO DECLARATION
OF JOHN WRIGHT

Jailbreak | The Back Page: Some Amazon Appstore Apps Require Rooting, AT&T Need ... Page 1 of 7

Monday, April 11, 2011
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You are here: Home / Jailbreak / Jailbreak | The Back Page: Some Amazon Appstore Apps Require
Rooting, AT&T Need Not Apply

Jailbreak | The Back Page: Some Amazon
Appstore Apps Require Rooting, AT&T Need
Not Apply
March 22, 2011 by iPhone Jailbreak Tools
Filed under Jailbreak
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Both of these warnings/restrictions serve to nicely highlight both a
weakness and a benefit in Google’s open Android platform
compared to Apple’s curated “walled garden” iOS ecosystem. On
the benefit side, users have an array of choices for where and how
to get their Android apps.
On the detriment side, those choices mean there is no single place
to go to find everything, and even mainstream and legit choices like
a store operated by retailing giant Amazon includes apps that the
vast majority of users can’t (or shouldn’t) install, making the online
market potentially dangerous, likely confusing, and, in some cases,
useless.

http://iphonejailbreaktools.com/4875/jailbreak-the-back-page-some-amazon-appstore-apps... 4/11/2011

Jailbreak | The Back Page: Some Amazon Appstore Apps Require Rooting, AT&T Need ... Page 2 of 7

Ma FAIL
On Amazon’s “Getting Started with the Amazon Appstore” page, the company lists three “Download
Restrictions.” The first is that Android devices for ATT’s network can’t download or install apps from
Amazon’s store.
“ATT Wireless does not support the purchase of applications from the Amazon Appstore for
Android,” Amazon said.
This may sound like it’s more of a suggestion than a restriction, but digging down a couple of links
deeper into Amazon’s site, I found different wording : “If you have an ATT phone or tablet, you
currently can’t install the Amazon Appstore or purchase apps from it.”
Amazon said, however, that ATT is, “working to allow customers to install the Amazon Appstore and
purchase apps from it,” so it looks like this could change at some point. The company has also linked
to what appears to be a third party website to be notified when ATT has this worked out , if you’re
interested.
Still, this is part and parcel to the wide open nature of the Android platform. With great freedom of
choice comes some incompatibility and many more potential points of failure. Many people will
gladly trade those weaknesses for the tradeoff in freedom, while many others will see the “It Just
Works” nature of Apple’s curated walled garden as offering the better experience.
Rootboy Slim
The second download restriction I found (there is also a heretofore unmentioned third restriction that
the store is only offered in the U.S.) is more…ominous, for lack of a better word.
Amazon wrote, “Some apps will only work on an Android device that has root-level permissions. You
should only download these apps if you are certain your device is rooted. Amazon.com does not
encourage you to root your phone.”
“Rooting” an Android device is similar (indeed, it’s almost precisely analogous) to jailbreaking an
iPhone or iPad. It’s basically the process of breaking through software restrictions on your
smartphone so that you, the user, has root access to the entire OS and your device’s hardware.
This gives the user full control over their device, and it allows the user to install any kind of software
they wish, to make modifications to the OS itself, and to access everything your phone has to offer
(carriers, especially Verizon, have a long track record of artificially blocking off parts of the devices
they sell to either limit what users can do or force them to pay for services offered by that carrier).
Of course, the downside of rooting an Android device (or jailbreaking your iPhone) is that third party
software also has full access to the OS and hardware. Many of the software restrictions in place on all
smartphones are there for the sake of security. Giving you root access runs the risk of giving the
world root access, and that means your device could more easily be hacked and/or taken over by the
bad guys.
Amawhat?
So why is Amazon selling software that requires rooting your Android device? The short answer, of
course, is “because they can,” but this is a very questionable position for a mainstream retailer to put
itself in.

http://iphonejailbreaktools.com/4875/jailbreak-the-back-page-some-amazon-appstore-apps... 4/11/2011

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Let’s start with the company’s own verbiage and reexamine the last sentence of the restriction I
quoted above: “Amazon.com does not encourage you to root your phone.”
Amazon is selling you an app that requires you to do something they don’t encourage you to do.
That’s ballsy at best, and fishy at worst. Sure, that sentence is just there as a bit of legal CYA, but it’s
necessary because rooting your device does carry some amount of risk for the user.
Apple to Oranges
Which brings me to my last point about the pros and cons of the open system vs. the walled garden.
Rooting is necessary for some Android devices if their owners want to do utilize everything their
device was equipped to do. This can be anything from being able to update the OS itself (which I find
mind boggling) to being able to access a built-in GPS or other services.
Carriers have their own agenda when they sell you a device, and this is why Apple’s iPhone was so
incredibly disruptive. Apple took the carrier’s power of setting that agenda away (and yes, they also
took some power away from users, but keep reading) – there’s nothing on the iPhone that can’t be
used** because Apple designed and built the device and controls the software, its management, the
online App Store, and everything else.
Users are trading carrier control for Apple’s control, but for the vast majority of users, Apple’s
interests are far more in line with the customer’s interests than was ever the case with carriers. That’s
why most of use find so much value in the iOS walled garden.
Still, some users want to jailbreak their iPhones for any number of reasons (from personal control to
unlocking the device for another network). They can buy apps at places like Cydia , which are largely
aimed at knowledgable users who have jailbroken their iOS device.
If you’re shopping at Cydia, you already have a jailbroken device, and are fairly likely know what
you’ve gotten yourself into. There’s certainly much more of a caveat emptor feel to such online stores
than at Apple’s App Store.
Amawhy?
This just isn’t the case if you’re shopping at Amazon’s Appstore for Android. I think it reasonable to
say that most people shopping at a major retailer like Amazon will have an expectation that what they
buy will work.
Despite the CYA clause Amazon is going to have some customers that don’t understand the rooting
issue, and that will lead to some unhappy customers. Worse, it will also lead to some users rooting
their devices that simply shouldn’t be doing so, and that will lead to compromised phones – it’s only a
matter of time.
Call me a Nervous Nelly (I’ve been called far worse), but I don’t understand why Amazon would put
themselves in this position.
* Really, it caught Dave Hamilton’s attention, but I’m happy to claim it for my own .
** Some countries have services like GPS or WiFi on the iPhone (or on any other device, including
Android) disabled due to restrictions put in place by those governments.

http://iphonejailbreaktools.com/4875/jailbreak-the-back-page-some-amazon-appstore-apps... 4/11/2011