Google Play Store

Google and Match Group have signed a temporary agreement so that any in-app payments made in Tinder and Hinge will be made using a third-party system.

In addition to other Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) announcements today, Google is making it easier to find accessible Android apps in the Play Store.

Last week, a handful of Google apps opened preview programs, but new versions have yet to emerge. The Play Store now says that the Wear OS companion app is getting a beta.

After a long wait and a number of limited region-locked beta previews, Apex Legends Mobile is now available for all Android users on the Google Play Store.

Google announced recently that it would purge the Play Store of outdated Android apps that didn’t support the platform’s latest features or had been neglected. According to a new report, Google’s crackdown will remove nearly 900,000 outdated Android apps from the Play Store.

In addition to a slew of new developer features at I/O 2022, Google is testing a Play Store tweak on Android that lets users see more information about apps without having to open the full listing.

At its core, Google I/O has always been a developer-focused event. Here are the biggest announcements that Google made during the I/O developer keynote and beyond.

Back in March, Google halted Android app and subscription purchases in Russia due to sanctions. Google Play is now “blocking the downloading of paid apps and updates to paid apps in Russia starting May 5, 2022.”

Google announced that the Play Store was getting a “Data safety” section last May, and it’s now beginning to roll out after a brief delay. The new section will be fully available over the coming weeks, and full developer adoption is set for July.

In addition to offering user-facing apps, Google Workspace gives companies the ability to manage their employees’ devices. Google Workspace admins now have more control over Android app updates on work devices that use managed Google Play.

A new Google Play Store policy coming into force is set to block third-party call recording apps from the online storefront from May 11.

At the end of last month, Google started requiring Android apps distributed via the Play Store to use its payment service rather than letting developers continue to collect billing details directly. To follow those latest guidelines, YouTube Premium and YouTube TV now use Google Play Billing. 

Subscriptions can get away from you, especially when you forget you signed up for anything to begin with. That’s exactly why you need to know how to easily cancel any Android app subscription at any moment, right from the Google Play Store. Here’s how you can do that.

With every release, Android introduces new system-level security and privacy features that more times than not requires support from third-party apps. Google Play will soon hide older apps for new users to encourage developers to support the latest Android functionality.

Beta programs allow you to experience cool new features in certain apps that you wouldn’t otherwise be able to see until full release. So how do you get early access to Google’s features? This guide will show you how to join beta programs on the Google Play Store and what apps allow you to do that.