Google Play Store

Last year, Android 10 let users limit an application’s location access to only when it’s actively in use. Android 11 later this year builds on that with one-time access, as well as a new Google Play policy that requires “developers get approval if they want to access location data in the background.”

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Last December, a report from the New York Times detailed how a chat app gaining traction around the world was actually being used as a spying tool by the United Arab Emirates (UAE). While ToTok was initially removed by Apple and Google, the Play Store later restored the messaging service. The Android app today looks to have been pulled again.

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The Google Play Points loyalty program is now rolling out to the web store, allowing you to accrue and spend your Play Points, no matter what device you use.

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Google has confirmed that it has now paid out over $80 billion to Play Store developers since the launch of the digital marketplace in March 2012.

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On occasion, Google Play sends promotional push notifications about deals and app-related editorial content. Some users today were prompted in the Play Store to download Google Opinion Rewards as a way to earn Play credits.

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Google wants us to use our phones less, or at least curb our smartphone usage. This has led to a number of standalone Digital Wellbeing apps that all have weird and wonderful notions of how we should be using our phones in a healthy manner.

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In a bid to declutter notification drawers, Google decided that disabling Play Store update notifications was something that was needed, despite being pretty useful.

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The Google Play Store isn’t just where you get new apps, but also where they’re updated. For most users, that’s done automatically, so updates are just an afterthought. Now, though, the Play Store is no longer showing notifications for updated apps.

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In September, Google Play removed 24 more malware-filled apps that amassed 500,000 downloads. Dubbed “Joker,” the company’s security team today detailed the very persistent “large-scale billing fraud family.”

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Google has officially announced its annual Indie Games Festival for 2020, which aims to highlight developers that have shown technical skill and innovative design in games development.

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The Google Opinion Rewards app really is a great little way to receive free Play Store credits to go toward apps, games, music, and movies just for answering some simple surveys and questionnaires.

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At its launch on Android last year, Fortnite could not be installed by simply going to the Play Store. It still can’t be; the battle royale game has to be downloaded directly from Epic Games and then sideloaded. Among other reasons, this is due to the developer not wanting to give Google its mandated 30% cut of lucrative in-app purchase revenue. Epic Games is now hoping for a special exception to that rule.

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