Google Play
Latest
New York Times and other US media join The Coalition for App Fairness
Back in September, Epic, Spotify and a variety of other companies both big and small came together to form The Coalition for App Fairness in an effort to pressure Apple and Google to change their app store policies. DCN claims Apple’s practices have negatively affected its members.
Disney+ is the best app of the year, according to Google Play users
The Best of 2020 winners include Zoom, 'Bad Boys for Life' and 'Genshin Impact.'
Google pulls popular Android apps that collected kids' device data
Google has removed three popular Android apps for kids after revelations they were collecting potentially identifying hardware data.
Google stops selling music through the Play Store
We knew it was coming, but as of this week, you can no longer buy individual music tracks and albums through the Google Play Store.
Android 12 will make it easier to install apps from third-party stores
Google said it will share more details on how it plans to make it easier to install apps from third-party stores in the future.
Epic, Spotify and others ally against Apple and Google app policies
A diverse variety of companies including Epic Games, Spotify, Match Group, Tile and others have formed an alliance to pressure Apple, Google and others to change their app store rules. The Coalition for App Fairness debuted today stating that “Apple taxes consumers and crushes innovation,” and that it will advocate “freedom of choice and fair competition across the app ecosystem.” The group plans to push for new regulations governing how app stores can be run.
Google may pull 'fediverse' Android apps for allegedly enabling hate speech (updated)
Google has pulled multiple 'fediverse' Android apps from the Play Store for allegedly enabling access to hate speech, but critics say it's overreaching.
The best games on Google Play Pass
It's no Apple Arcade, but Google Play Pass has a lot of great titles to offer.
Google Play Music will start shutting down in September
It’s been a long time coming, but Google is in the final stages of shutting down its longstanding Google Play Music app and service in favor of YouTube Music. At that point, you won’t be able to stream from the Google Play Music app at all; streaming on the web will stop then as well. While Google Play Music will stop functioning sometime in October, former users will have until December of this year to transfer all their music and data out of the service.
Microsoft and Google team up to bring more web apps to the Play Store
Microsoft and Google are working together to improve web apps on Android devices.
Google is testing a way to purchase Android subscriptions outside the app
One of the features it’s testing is the ability to pay for subscription from within an app’s Google Play listing and even if you’ve yet to install the app itself. The new feature could help boost transparency in the Google Play store, which the company has been striving towards as of late.
'Fortnite' is finally available through the Google Play Store
Epic has given in to pressure and released 'Fortnite' for Android on the Google Play Store, rather than insisting on its own launcher.
Google bans apps with deceptive subscription offers from the Play Store
Google has updated the Play Store's policies to ban apps that trick you into subscriptions.
Google Play adds a Kids tab full of teacher-approved apps
Google wants to help parents find kid-friendly content. Today, it’s rolling out a new Kids tab on Google Play filled with “teacher approved” apps. Each app is rated on factors like age-appropriateness, quality of experience and enrichment, and parents can quickly review those ratings before they download.
Google pulls Infowars from the Play Store over coronavirus misinformation
In 2018, several internet services decided to pull channels from Alex Jones and his Infowars setup, including YouTube and Apple's App Store, but until now the company's app remained available via the Google Play Store. While conspiracy theories and lawsuits from parents who said he'd lied about them and their children weren't enough to earn Jones the boot, Wired reports that the final straw came after Jones published a video disputing quarantine and social distancing efforts meant to slow the spread of COVID-19. Google and other companies have banded together to combat misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic, and in a statement a spokesperson said "Now more than ever, combating misinformation on the Play Store is a top priority for the team." The only question left is why they waited so long to do something that seemed inevitable from the start.
Google makes it easier to play Android apps before they've finished loading
After this year's GDC was cancelled because of the coronavirus, tech companies have been making their own games-related announcements independently. Last week Facebook revealed its plans for new and existing Oculus VR titles, now Google's Android and Play teams have announced what they're doing to help developers build and scale their games across Google products.
Huawei built an app to help people sideload popular Android apps
Huawei is still building great smartphones like the Mate 30, but it's hard to convince people to buy one without access to Google apps. However, it's apparently working on a way to get popular Android applications without an app store or the need to download APKs, according to XDA Developers. It has created an app called "AppSearch," currently being tested in Germany, to help users install popular apps like Facebook and WhatsApp.
Google explains how it's tackling the coronavirus outbreak
Google's efforts to inform people about the coronavirus outbreak extend well beyond a search alert. The company has outlined all the ways it's addressing COVID-19, including a bid to stamp out misinformation. On top of the SOS Alert (with news and tips) in web searches, you'll also see Knowledge Panels to explain the condition and how to deal with it. YouTube, meanwhile, will direct people to the WHO and local organizations through the homepage and provide ad space to government organizations in affected areas. Google Maps will also bring up "helpful and reliable local information," although the company didn't say what that entailed.
Google fully explains why its apps aren't on new Huawei phones
Since last spring, the government's entity list ban against Huawei (and ZTE) has largely prevented US companies from working with them. Despite legal wrangling and trade negotiations between the two countries the ban is still in place, and in the case of Google, it means that while there are still updates and services available on older devices, any new Huawei phones (like the Mate 30 Pro, shown above) don't have access to its services. This has been the case for months now, but today Google posted a longer explanation, which it said was in response to continued questions about the issue. For end users, especially those outside the US and China, it might not be immediately clear why the usual suite of Google apps and services aren't on new Huawei phones and now there's at least a detailed official explanation to reference. It could also serve the purpose of warning off anyone planning on making a workaround available, like the LZ Play one that was blocked last year. Android & Play legal director Tristan Ostrowski also laid out the company's opposition to people sideloading its apps. According to him it's because Google can't certify new Huawei phones, due to the ban, and cited the risk of compromised security either in the devices or via an app that has been tampered with. While Huawei had hinted at replacing Android with its own OS, it's continuing to use Android, and replaced Google services with those of other companies like TomTom, for maps and navigation.
Google is cracking down on apps with 'disruptive' ads
Google's Play Store is a pretty open platform. While that can be a good thing for users and app developers, some bad actors can take advantage, either through malware or obnoxious ads. Today, the company announced that it has removed nearly 600 apps from the Play Store -- and has banned them from its ad monetization platforms -- because they repeatedly violated Google's disruptive ads policy. Unfortunately, those apps have already been installed over 4.5 billion times, according to BuzzFeed News.
