Read data about an application from the android market

Question

I've noticed lately that some app recommender programs seem to get data off the android market. I'm wondering how I could retrieve information, such as screen shots, description, developer, number of downloads, rating, etc...

I've done many searches and I haven't found any solutions. It would be nice to be able to use that info to be able to see a rating for an app inside an app chooser, for example. Or perhaps be able to track changes and rating over time and version history, etc...

Is there an API to access that information? Is there a way to parse the data from a website? Or is there a complicated hack involved? Any information is appreciated...

Answer 1

Is there an API to access that information?

Not a publicly supported one offered by Google, sorry.

Answer 2

There is an API currently hosted on Google Code. I've made use of it in one of my own apps and I think it works quite well. You are able to access everything that is visible in the market including comments and screenshots.

http://code.google.com/p/android-market-api/