The Android Market can be a frustrating place to find applications. And according to a blog post today, Google says that giving users more information about apps as they browse the Market has been “a top request” from Android users.
So in the spirit of giving good information (and not at all to combat ideas that Android is full of porn, I’m sure), Google will be adding content ratings to Android apps..
The policy won’t be changing in terms of what content is allowed in the Android Market. But in coming weeks, all applications will be rated based on whether they fall into the All, Pre-Teen, Teen, or Mature categories. These categories are based on whether or not apps contain profanity, sexual content, and violence, for example. Developers are responsible for rating their apps themselves, although users will be able to flag apps that may be rated incorrectly.
In preparation for the new ratings, starting next week, developers submitting new or updated applications will be required to provide a rating when they upload their apps to the Market. And by the time that all the ratings are visible to the public, all applications and games will have to be rated, otherwise they’ll be automatically tagged as “Mature.”
