Google offering 10-cent apps to celebrate 10 billion Android Market downloads

Google said Tuesday that customers had downloaded more than 10 billion apps in the Android Market. To celebrate, Android users will be able to download 10-cent apps over the next 10 days.

Google, whose name implies a fixation on exponents of 10, didn't say whether 10 10-cent apps will be offered for 10 days. But on Tuesday—yes, Google will sell 10 apps for the 10-cent price: Asphalt 6 HD, Color & Draw for Kids, Endomondo Sports Tracker Pro, Fieldrunners HD, Great Little War Game, Minecraft, Paper Camera, Sketchbook Mobile, Soundhound Infinity, and Swiftkey X.

Android downloads have grown from 1 billion total in July 2010 to 10 billion seventeen months later.

"One billion is a pretty big number by any measurement," Eric Chu, director of the Android Ecosystem, said in a blog post. "However, when it's describing the speed at which something is growing, it's simply amazing. This past weekend, thanks to Android users around the world, Android Market exceeded 10 billion app downloads—with a growth rate of one billion app downloads per month. We can't wait to see where this accelerating growth takes us in 2012."

It's unlikely that the developers are discounting the apps themselves, meaning that Google is paying the difference directly to the developer.

Although Google is discounting the apps, the concept of discounted or free apps has been associated more with Amazon, which offers a different paid app for free, on a daily basis. (Apple has tried to block Amazon from using the term "app store" via a recent lawsuit.) Amazon launched its app store in March, using Rovio's movie tie-in to its Angry Birds franchise, "Angry Birds Rio," as an exclusive app to launch the store.

Apple's App Store hit 10 billion downloads in January, and the company awarded a $10,000 iTunes gift card to England's Gail Davis for downloading the 10 billionth app. It hit 15 billion downloads in July.

This article, written by Mark Hachman, originally appeared on PCMag.com and is republished on Gear Live with the permission of Ziff Davis, Inc.