Aptoide

Aptoide is a software "marketplace" application for installing mobile applications which runs on the Android operating system.[1] In Aptoide, unlike the Android-default App Store, there is not a unique and centralized store; instead, each user manages their own store. The software package is published by Aptoide S.A., a for-profit company incorporated in November 2011 and headquartered in Lisbon, Portugal.[2]

Aptoide
DeveloperAptoide
Written inJava
OS familyAndroid Marketplace (Google Play, Amazon Underground Android Appstore)
Working stateCurrent
Source modelOpen-source software
Initial releaseNovember 17, 2009 (2009-11-17)
Marketing targetSmartphone
Tablet computer
Available inMulti-lingual
PlatformsARM, Android-x86
LicenseGNU General Public License 2.0
Official websiteen.aptoide.com

There are several versions of the Aptoide app: Aptoide for smartphones and tablets, Aptoide TV – an edition for smart TVs and STBs, Aptoide VR and Aptoide Kids – developed for children's devices.

The Android application used to access the stores is open source,[3] and there are several forks such as F-Droid.[4] The communication between the client and servers is done using an open protocol based on XML.

The concept is inspired by the APT packaging manager, which can work with multiple sources (repositories). When the user wants a package, they can use the client to search for sources where the application is stored.

The name Aptoide is formed from the words "APT" (the Debian package manager) and "oide" (the last syllable of "Android").

As of 2017, the Aptoide platform software had been downloaded about 6 billion times, was used by about 200 million users, and was available in about 40 languages. In the various stores, it is possible to find about 1 million Android apps.

History

Aptoide started as a proposal of Paulo Trezentos at the 2009 Caixa Mágica Summer Camp.[5] The proposal was accepted and later became what today is Aptoide. This first stage of development was later developed in the scope of SAPO Summerbits.[6]

The idea behind Aptoide came from different sources. On one hand, the research in Linux installers in Mancoosi European Project,[7] Paulo Trezentos PhD project and Portugal Telecom A5 phone, project where the team participated.

In the end of 2010, it was launched in the Bazaar Android site. Bazaar Android provided the possibility for the users to create their own store. In August 2012, Aptoide and Bazaar Android brands were merged to allow a better communication.[8]

In November 2011, Aptoide was incorporated[2] in Europe.

In 2013, Aptoide received a total of 750,000 euros in seed funding from Portugal Ventures.

In 2015, the company secured a Series A financing round of 3.7 million euros (4 million dollars), led by German venture capital firm e.ventures with co-investment from Gobi Partners (China) and Golden Gate Ventures (Singapore). The investment has allowed Aptoide to grow its team, currently having over 60 employees.[9]

In 2014, Aptoide filed a European Union Antitrust complaint against Google, claiming that Google creates obstacles for users to install third-party app stores, links essential services with Google Play (thus blocking, again, these third-party app stores), and blocks access to Aptoide websites in its Chrome Web browser.[10]

In May 2015, Aptoide announced that it would start its operations in Asia[11] by opening an office in Singapore.

In 2017, Aptoide announced that it would be working with AppCoin and "enter the digital currency business with the plainly named AppCoins. Launched in conjunction with the 2017 Web Summit edition, the $18 million Initial Coin Offering (ICO) will allow users to use AppCoins to pay each other or for in-app purchases, such as game upgrades."[12] Appcoin's 200 million users will be incentivized to engage with advertising to earn currency.[12]

Description

Android client

Aptoide client allows one to search, browse and install applications in the Android phone. Aptoide is available in 17 languages.[13]

To install Aptoide, the user has to retrieve the APK (installable file) from the official site. The installation is not available through Google Play Store due to 4.5 Non-compete clause of Google Play Developer Distribution Agreement.[14] This is the same clause that blocks the Amazon Appstore application from being available through Google Play. Installing Aptoide requires users to allow the installation from "Unknown sources" in Android settings.[15]

After the installation of Aptoide, the user can add stores (repositories). Besides the default store (Apps), many other are available from different stores. When a store is added using the URL of the store, Aptoide retrieves the list of the applications and stores it locally. The user can then browse in the applications or search in the Internet for other stores.

In June 2011, Aptoide Uploader was released as a "sister" application from the same development team. Aptoide Uploader is an Android app that allows users to upload to an existent Aptoide store.[16]

Aptoide Uploader uses the available Aptoide Webservices[17] to upload the application. The submitted APK file is kept in the user's store where they can manage.

For the user that wants to backup their apps to a private store, it is advisable to use Aptoide Apps Backup that keeps a record of the apps that are backed up. All the applications in stores are managed using a backoffice in the Aptoide site.

Aptoide Apps Backup uses the webservices to upload the APK file to the store. To know what applications are already backed up, Aptoide Apps Backup uses the info.xml XML file available in the store.

Interfaces

The communication between the Android client applications and the store is done using a XML file called info.xml. This file lists the applications in the store as well the basic information about each application available. Info.xml is open and a detailed definition is available.[18]

Part of info.xml[19] file:

<apklst><version>5</version>
<repository>
<basepath>http://mirror.apk10.aptoide.com/apks/10/aptoide-f63c6f2461f65f32b6d144d6d2ff982e/aptoidedev/</basepath>
<appscount>1</appscount>
... </repository>
<package>
<name>Aptoide</name>
...
</package>

There are two other XML files: extra.xml[20] and stats.xml.[21]

Extra.xml contains additional information about the apps such as the full description. The file "stats.xml" contains the downloads and likes of the available applications.

Usage

Aptoide usage was reported as follows:[22][23][24][25][26]

Aptoide version Date Unique Yearly Users # Stores Different apps Cumulative downloads
9.0.0 5 June 2018[27] 150,000,000[28][29] 1,000,000[29] 7,000,000,000[29]
8.3 30 May 2017[30] 142,000,000 250,000 900,000 3,600,000,000
8.0.0 3 October 2016[31] 200,000 660,000 2,700,000,000
6.5.2 July 2015 100,000,000 140,000 330,000 1,580,000,000
6.3.0 April 2015 136,000 311,000 1,424,000,000
6.2.3 126,000 275,000 1,276,000,000
5.0.0 20 March 2014
4.1.3 22 July 2013 1,300,000 350,000 120,000 380,000,000
4.0.0 4 December 2012 500,000 170,000 50,000 150,000,000
2.7.1 2 August 2012 200,000 88,000 65,000 60,000,000
2.7 19 June 2012 107,000 62,000 43,000 44,000,000
2.6.2 April 2012 82,000 51,000 34,000 32,000,000
2.6.1 2 March 2012 57,000 36,000 19,000 22,900,000
2.6 20 January 2012 42,000 27,100 16,000 17,400,000
2.5.4 22 December 2011 34,000 22,200 13,400 14,000,000
2.5.3 2 November 2011 21,000 13,300 9,400 9,100,000
2.5.2 22 September 2011 14,800 10,300 7,700 6,800,000
2.5.1 22 June 2011 6,800 3,500 4,000 2,100,000
2.5 3 June 2011 5,300 1,200 3,100 2,000,000
2.4.1 May 2011 3,700 1,600 2,000 1,500,000

See also

References
  1. "Alternative to Google Play Store". 23 November 2011. Retrieved 2012-11-23.
  2. "Crunchbase company page: Aptoide". 23 November 2012. Retrieved 2012-11-23.
  3. "Aptoide Github". aptoide.org.
  4. "About F-Droid". 31 October 2011. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  5. "2009 Summer Internship - Aptoide" (in Portuguese). 5 August 2009. Retrieved 2012-10-30.
  6. "Projectos seleccionados para o programa SAPO Summerbits, 2 Edição, 2009" (in Portuguese). 3 August 2009. Archived from the original on 2014-10-01. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  7. Thomson, John; Trezentos, Paulo (23 May 2011). "D6.4 - Final packages of the Mancoosi tools for Mandriva Linux and Caixa Mágica" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  8. "BazaarAndroid is now Aptoide.com". 27 July 2012. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  9. Russell, Jon. "Aptoide Lands $4M To Grow Its Alternative Android App Store In Emerging Markets". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
  10. Butcher, Mike. "Third Party Android App Store Files EU Antitrust Complaint". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
  11. "Portuguese Google Play competitor Aptoide brings its branded app store concept to Southeast Asia". 25 May 2015. Retrieved 2015-07-15.
  12. Ferreira, Reinaldo. "$18 million ICO: Social Android app store Aptoide launches AppCoins | EU-Startups".
  13. "Aptoide Translators". 2011-07-27. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  14. "Google Play Developer Distribution Agreement". 2012-10-31. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  15. "Android Open Distribution". 2012-10-31. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  16. "Aptoide Uploader is now available - Now you can upload your android applications to your own Bazaar repository". 2011-06-17. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  17. "Aptoide Webservices description". 2012-10-31. Archived from the original on 2012-10-21. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  18. "Aptoide Client / Server Interfaces". 2012-10-31. Archived from the original on 2012-10-21. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  19. "Aptoidedev store info.xml". 2012-10-31. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  20. "Aptoidedev store extras.xml". 2012-10-31. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  21. "Aptoidedev store stats.xml". 2012-10-31. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  22. "Home Aptoide". Retrieved 2015-04-27.
  23. Jacinto,Roberto (2010-02-07). "apt-get for Android - with GUI". Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  24. "Codebits2011 - 2 perguntas a... Paulo Trezentos" (in Portuguese). 2010-09-29. Archived from the original on 2012-03-28. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  25. "Spin off da Caixa Mágica testa implementação de Aptoide a partir de Silicon Valley" (in Portuguese). 2011-09-29. Archived from the original on 2012-01-02. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  26. "Silicon Valley @ Codebits" (in Portuguese). 2011-11-11. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  27. https://github.com/Aptoide/aptoide-client-v8/releases/tag/v9.0.0.0(9005)
  28. The Aptoide Team (10 May 2017). "How To Reach Mobile Users in Asia". Aptoide official Blog. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  29. "About us: Taking App Discovery to the Next Level". Aptoide. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  30. https://github.com/Aptoide/aptoide-client-v8/releases/tag/v8.3.0.0(8300)
  31. https://github.com/Aptoide/aptoide-client-v8/tags?after=v8.0.0.5(8085)
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