Football Manager dev calls for Steam on Android to combat rampant piracy
Would "revolutionise the market for all".
Football Manager developer Miles Jacobson has called for Steam to launch on Android as a way of combating rampant piracy on the platform.
Jacobson, boss of Sega-owned developer Sports Interactive, wrote in a guest blog on Wired titled: "Dear Android: a 9:1 piracy rate for games is not good enough", that Steam on Android would "revolutionise the market for all".
Last month Eurogamer talked with Jacobson about the Android version of Football Manager Handheld. He explained why Android suffers more from piracy than other platforms, such as iOS, and expressed concern about his studio's commitment to it in the future.
"I tweeted about this 9:1 piracy ratio, calling those that had bombarded us with requests for the game and then pirated it dicks," he said. "I make no apology for this. Anyone who illegally downloads software is a dick."
Some Eurogamer readers suggested the app's relative high cost (£6.99) meant its high piracy rate should have been expected, but Jacobson rejected this as "no excuse for illegal downloading... games are entertainment, not a human right".
Now, Jacobson wants something to be done about piracy on Android - and he has an idea.
"What we really need for Android is an online shop front that doesn't just make it easy for people to buy and access their games, but also offers services such as leaderboards (think global high score tables) and community features, alongside some customer-friendly DRM," he said.
"A system that doubles up as a way to 'matchmake' network gamers, so you can play against your friends. An online store that essentially acts like an app-only iTunes, Game Centre and a social network for Android users all in one.
"On PC and Mac there was a great innovation a few years back built by Gabe Newell and his team at Valve which does all of those things. It's called Steam. Something like Steam on Android could revolutionise the market for all - we're at a time where developers and publishers are turning their back on Android due to all the problems the market has, rather than embracing it."
