The purchase of Google Play apps loses apps.
From the beginning of 2024 to the present, the Appplace Android market went from the hospitality of about 3.4 million applications worldwide to just 1.8 million, according to a new analysis of the App Intelligence Provider Competence. This is a decrease of about 47%, representing a significant clearance of applications available to Android users worldwide.
Decline is not part of a larger global trend, the business also notes. During the same period, Apple’s iOS App Store went from hosting 1.6 million applications so far about 1.64 million applications, for example – a slight increase.
In the case of Google, reducing applications could be a relief for Android owners who had to sort through scammy, spammy and poor quality to find the best for installation. The reduction could also help developers who had to fight for viewing.
Over the years, the least rigorous requirements of Google Play to revise the application have led to market exceeding with lower quality applications. While Apple continues to impose strict application review measures before publishing, Google is often based on automated controls in combination with malware scans to speed up the application review process. It tends to have a shorter period of application review as a result of its lighter contact in terms of human review.
In July 2024, Google announced that it would Increase the minimum quality requirements For applications that may have influenced the number of Play Store applications available.
Instead of prohibiting only broken applications that crashed, they will not be installed or run properly, the company said it will start prohibiting applications that have proven “limited functionality and content”. That Included static applications Without specific applications, such as applications only for text or PDF file applications. It also included applications that provided minimal content, such as those that offered only one wallpaper. In addition, Google Pared apps designed to do nothing or have no function, which may have been testing or other abandoned developer attempts.
It was achieved for comments, Google confirmed that its new policies were factors here, which included an extensive set verification requirements; Required Application Test For new personal developer accounts and expanded human reviews To check for applications trying to deceive or deceive users.
In addition, the company highlighted other 2024 investments in AI to detect threats, stronger privacy policies, improved programmer tools and much more. As a result, google obstructed 2.36 million applications that published the publication on the Play Store and banned more than 158,000 developer accounts that had tried to publish harmful applications, he said.
One factor that Google did not mention was the new rule of state -owned merchant status of the EU from February, who began demanding developers to share their names and addresses in registration of the application. Those who failed to do so would see their applications being removed from EU app stores (it is worth pointing out that Apple also began to demand the state of the trader Information in February and did not see as a result of the applications available.)
In addition, he notes that Appfigures began to see a reduction in the number of apps on the Google Play Store even before the official start of cleaning last summer. It still has no explanation for this change. However, the company says there were 10.4k releases on Google Play so far this year, up 7.1% annually since April.
