Android 2.2 prevents some apps from displaying in the Market Tweet

Put down that Froyo, it may not be fully frozen yet! A voice at Google (Ry Guy) recently came out stating that Android 2.2 was not quite ready for full public consumption. Now it looks as though those of us who were so quick to update using the link on Google’s servers are beginning to feel the repercussions of the (super) early adopter. Reports have began to pop up that applications that previously displayed in the Market with 2.1 are no longer showing up for 2.2 users.

For those who installed the Froyo update, popular applications such as NYTimes, Epicurious, FlightTrack, and Calorie Counter are now unable to be found on the Market. Users who had the applications previously installed report them functioning correctly, but are finding them no longer listed in the Downloads portion of the Market. Worse still, some users who ran a factory update are finding themselves unable to even install previously purchased apps since they do not display in Downloads or Market searches.

Investigation into a related Google Group discussion reveals that applications with copy protection enabled are causing the application disappearances. When an Android developer releases an application into the Market, they have the option of “Forward Locking” it. This feature is designed to prevent application content copying, as well as disables the ability to install the application onto developer or unreleased devices.

It appears that since 2.2 is not “officially released”, the signature it gives to the Market is one of an unofficial phone, and therefore is prevented from seeing Forward Locked applications. At this time, the only solution for users craving an invisible application (where is my Huffington Post!) is to hope the developers remove Forward Locking, or wait until Google releases the official Froyo build over the air. Reports are that users who ran the spurious upgrade will still get the update notifications when the final build is released.

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