The G1 is the first mobile phone with new operating system Android by Google. The site Android and Me launched a bounty. The challenge was to write a G1 application that would scan the barcode of an official DVD, identify the title and then request the possible torrents for this title by connecting to most important trackers sites such as The Pirate Bay, Mininova…
Alec Holmes was the first to produce a working application and claim the $90 bounty. Through this application, called Torrent Droid, it is possible to walk in a store, scan the title, select the preferred torrent and launch the download of the torrent!
The application itself is not a revolution in the world of piracy. It is another way to enter the target. Rather than typing in the title in your preferred search tool (Che, dedicated toolbar in the browser…) you scan the disc. This change nothing in the piracy world.
What is meaningful is that this application was chosen to illustrate some advantages of G1 and Android. It would be interesting to discover who is behind the site Android and Me.
Is the application illegal? Your opinion?