Google's getting serious about boosting the appeal of the Android developer ecosystem. The company's newest move: to triple the number of countries where developers can sell their paid applications.
Starting today, the Android Market will support the selling of paid apps for 20 new countries, bringing the total to 29. According to the Android Developers Blog, the new countries include Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland and Taiwan.
To support this expansion, Google will make it possible for Android Market users in 18 new countries over the next two weeks, bringing the total number of nations that support app purchases to 32. Yes, there are more countries that support app purchases than ones that support the selling of paid apps, likely due to a combination of varying national laws on selling software and geographic restrictions to Google Checkout.