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645 'Google Play' stories March 2012 - April 2016
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Before the unified Play branding, Google had the Android Market, Google Music, and Google eBookstore. Google decided to merge and rebrand its individual digital offerings into the Play Store in March of 2012.

The Play Store is now the default place to purchase apps, movies & television, music, books, and news subscriptions for all Android devices. The latter four offerings having their individual Android and iOS apps to watch, listen, and read purchased content. Most content can also be accessed through the web.

In April of 2016, the suite of icons were redesigned in a similar style to provide a consistent look across all devices and the web.

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Google removes Taliban app from the Play Store, alleged ISIS app remains

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Apr 4 2016 - 5:12 am PT
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The BBC reports that Google has removed an Android app used by the Taliban to post propaganda.

Alemarah, an app for Android phones created by Islamist fundamentalist group the Taliban, has been removed from Google’s Play Store […]

The hardline group blamed “technical issues” for its disappearance shortly after it launched on 1 April. However the BBC understands it was taken down because it violated a Google app policy which prohibits hate speech.

However, TNW reports that a messaging app allegedly created by ISIS remains available on Google Play.

Google says that it never comments on issues relating to specific apps.

Photo: AP Photo/Rahmat Gul

9to5Toys Lunch Break: Google Play MP3 albums $1, Lexar 256GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive $50, AKG Headphones $120, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Mar 17 2016 - 1:19 pm PT
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:

Google Play MP3 albums $1 ea: Arctic Monkeys, Shinedown and Silversun Pickups

Take home the Lexar JumpDrive 256GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive for $50 shipped (Reg. $80)

Amazon Gold Box – AKG K-495NC Premium Active Noise-Cancelling Headphones $120 shipped (Orig. $350)

Apple 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro (newest) 2.7GHz/8GB/256GB $1,200 shipped (Reg. $1,499)

Save big on Apple’s newest laptops: Retina MacBook Pro $1,000 (Reg. $1,299), 256GB 11″ MacBook Air $870 (Reg. $1,099)

Buy or upgrade Parallels ($49-$79) & get 7 Mac apps free: 1Password, Parallels Access, & more (Reg. $269)

MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:

Green Deals: Goal Zero Nomad 7 Solar USB Charger (refurb) $30 (Orig. $80), Philips Dimmable LED Bulbs $6, more

[tweet https://twitter.com/9to5toys/status/710481620034297856 align=’center’]

MORE DEALS STILL ALIVE:

Bluetooth Speakers: Sony SRSX7 w/ Wi-Fi + AirPlay $130 (Reg. $150+), Bohm SoundBlock $22 (Reg. $50), more

How-to: Use your car and an inexpensive inverter to replace the need for a home generator

NEW PRODUCTS & MORE:

Sony’s PS4 Virtual Reality kit is finally ready for primetime this fall + exclusive titles announced

Android gaming gets a boost w/ streaming game demos, indie apps collection, & gameplay recording/streaming

Avatar for Abner Li Mar 14 2016 - 10:52 am PT
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Google is announcing several big Android gaming updates at this year’s Game Developers Conference. A majority of them will be user facing, like app streaming and more social features in Play Games, while others will help developers market and add new features to their games.


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Several Brit Awards 2016 performances are now available for free on Google Play

Avatar for Feb 26 2016 - 10:13 am PT
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Google Play has some of the biggest performances from the 2016 Brit Awards for free. There are a total of 7 songs available from major artists including The Weeknd, Coldplay, Justin Bieber and even a special tribute to David Bowie featuring Lorde with David Bowie’s backing band. All of the freebies can be streamed or downloaded exclusively from Google Play:

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Play Games will now use unique Gamer IDs to represent users, claim yours today

Avatar for Abner Li Feb 18 2016 - 10:46 am PT
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Last month, Google announced that new Play Games users would get a player ID instead of having to make a Google+ account. Player IDs are now being rebranded as Gamer ID and will act as an in-game identity. As they are unique, Google recommends heading to the Play Games app now to claim yours.


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After over two years, Google quietly ends the Google Play for Education program

Avatar for Stephen Hall Feb 16 2016 - 1:53 pm PT
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CRN reported over the weekend that Google is quietly shuttering its Google Play for Education program, and now we have confirmation of the plans via a statement made to TechCrunch. According to this statement, Google will no longer be selling Google Play for Education licenses effective March 31st of this year. That said, existing customers should not be seeing an interruption of services…


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Final Fantasy IX is now available for download on Android w/ special launch pricing

Avatar for Justin Kahn Feb 9 2016 - 9:42 am PT
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From 9to5Toys.com:

Late last year, Square Enix announced that a re-releases of Final Fantasy IX would be coming to Android, iOS and PC. At the time, there was no specific word as to when North American gamers would actually get their hands on it. However, this morning we noticed a listing for the Android version of the game go live on Google Play.


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Paid Google Play Newsstand subscritpions expand to eight Middle Eastern countries, app receives UI tweaks

Avatar for Abner Li Feb 8 2016 - 2:10 pm PT
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Play Newsstand has a surprisingly large user base due to the fact that it is pre-installed on most Android devices. Earlier this month, the app was updated with some visual tweaks to the main feed and article layout. Today, users in eight Middle Eastern countries will be able to buy paid content from the app.


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Google seemingly kicking standalone ad-blockers from the Play Store

Avatar for Cam Bunton Feb 4 2016 - 3:17 am PT
2 Comments

Update: VentureBeat received information from a source, shedding a little more light on the situation.

A source close to the situation indicates that Google considers this a “unique case” because two apps are required to invoke the ad blocking. Furthermore, the source adds that Google has no problem with browsers which can block ads within themselves via built-in functionality (like Adblock Browser) or via plugins.

Earlier in the week, Samsung’s new browser API meant developers, if they wanted to, could build ad-blocking apps to work alongside the browser. It’s similar to the ad-blocking feature Apple introduced in iOS 9 with Safari, which lead to a number of ad and tracker-blocking apps become popular within the first few weeks of iOS 9’s arrival.

With this feature added, more developers could develop standalone ad-blockers for Android which work with Samsung‘s mobile browser. It turns out however, that Google has pulled some apps, and rejected updates for others. It seems the company isn’t keen on having standalone apps — designed to work alongside browsers to block ads — on the Play Store…


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Google Play Music showing new Podcasts interface for some users

Avatar for Cam Bunton Feb 3 2016 - 5:13 am PT
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It wasn’t that long ago that rumors predicted that Google was planning to bring a new podcasts feature to its popular Play Music app. This would see Google add yet another media platform to its already large list of options available in the Play Store. With it already offering books, movies, music downloads and streaming, apps and games, it would mean Google would now offer virtually every kind of popular media. Popular podcaster, Bill Simmons confirmed the move on Twitter before taking down his tweet earlier today.

Thanks to Android Police, we now have a good idea as to what the podcasts user interface will look like and the features it’ll bring along with it…


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Play Games announces automatic sign-in, no longer requires a Google+ account

Avatar for Abner Li Jan 25 2016 - 8:43 am PT
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Over the weekend, Google announced changes to Play Games permissions that are mostly meant for developers, but regular users who game on Android will also see a benefit. Players no longer need their Google accounts upgraded to Google+ to use Play Games and can now automatically be signed-in with a standard Google account.


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The Google Play Store now supports promo codes for apps and games

Avatar for Chance Miller Jan 14 2016 - 4:03 pm PT
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Google at long last has added support for promo codes to the Play Store. This is a feature that has been available in the iOS App Store for ages now, but only today has the feature made its way to Android. Developers can now create promo code links for apps and games via this section in the Developer Console.


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Google Play Books comes to Egypt, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and 5 more new countries

Avatar for Stephen Hall Jan 13 2016 - 10:34 am PT
1 Comment

This one’s a quick one. Google has today launched Google Play Books in 9 new countries, bringing the total number of locales that have access to the service to 75. Those residing in Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates will find that they can use Play Books effective immediately.

On a related note, Google updated Play Books this time last month with a new Night Light mode that lets you read in the dark without killing your eyes. Hopefully they’ll bring this feature to the OS as a whole soon, just like Apple is planning to do with the launch of iOS 9.3. Most of us have been using this on our desktops with F.lux.

Skype bringing free group video calling to Android

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Jan 12 2016 - 12:22 pm PT
2 Comments

Skype today announced that it’s bringing free group video calling— a feature it’s long had available on the desktop—to mobile devices including Android users.

Yes, it really has been a decade since Skype changed the way people connect with their loved ones. 6 years ago, we innovated again with one-to-one video calling on mobile phones. Today, we are excited to announce the next evolution – group video calling on Android, iPhone, iPad and Windows 10 Mobile.

The feature will officially launch in the coming weeks, but you can pre-register through Skype’s website here starting today.

And keep an eye out for updates to the Skype for Android app. In the latest update to the app, Skype also introduced to the ability to “Send video messages to groups directly from group chats.”

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t20MzFcwWVM]

Lenovo chief: Google Play Services will be in China this year

Avatar for Cam Bunton Jan 11 2016 - 2:31 am PT
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According to a report by Tech.Sina, Google will finally bring its services in to China. Lenovo chief, Chen Xudong claims Google is on track to bring its Play Services to the nation at some point in 2016, and that its desire to do so isn’t a secret. Google wants its services back in China, but has faced strong opposition from the government in the past, heavily restricting its presence there.

While Android has long been the dominant smartphone platform in China, Google’s presence there is still very limited. In fact, Google Play Services are practically non-existent. Before the Nexus 6P was built, it was rumored by a reliable publication that Google had chosen Huawei specifically because of its influence in China. With Huawei being a Chinese brand, and the biggest seller of smartphones in the country, its influence is huge. What’s more, Google also recently partnered with (and took a minor stake in) Mobvoi, one of the most widely-used and advanced Chinese AI and voice recognition companies.

Clearly, with Android being the most widely-used smartphone OS in China, Play Services aren’t required or critical to the platform’s success. Bringing Play Services in to China would mostly be an effort to help end fragmentation in a country where multiple app stores exist for Android.

No specific timeframe was given in terms of when we might see Google Play back in China. One can only assume getting the service approved takes multiple jumps over political hurdles and cutting through endless miles of red tape. We’ll keep you updated when/if there’s any more to share on the issue.

PSA: Make sure you haven’t installed any of the 13 malicious apps now banned from the Play store

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Jan 8 2016 - 6:19 am PT
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ArsTechnica reports that Google has pulled 13 malicious apps from the Play store after they were found to make unauthorized downloads. The apps (listed below) are particularly dangerous in that they attempt to gain root privileges that would allow them to remain installed even after a factory reset.

The malware used a clever technique to make the apps appear safe, giving them high download numbers and positive ratings.

The apps are capable of using compromised devices to download and positively review other malicious apps in the Play store by the same authors. This helps increase the download figures in the Play Store.

Although the family of malware known as Brain Test has been around for a while, affected apps have previously only been found in third-party app stores. This is the first time Brain test apps have been found in the Google Play store …


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The Beatles music will be available to stream from Christmas Eve on Google Play, Spotify, Apple Music, many more

Avatar for Cam Bunton Dec 23 2015 - 4:17 am PT
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At long last, The Beatles music is going to be available to stream on many of the most popular music streaming services from tomorrow, December 24th. Whether you prefer to use Spotify, Google Play, Apple Music, Rhapsody or one of many others, you’ll be able to sing along to the Fab Four’s most popular tunes anywhere you like, without having to pay to download individual songs or albums …


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Google Play Discounts: Save 75% on a movie rental or 50% off one music album

Avatar for Jared Weintraub Dec 22 2015 - 9:00 am PT
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Update: You can also grab a 3-month trial of Google Play Music Unlimited for $1. That’s access to over 35 million songs on demand and ad free plus you can try out YouTube Red with this offer as well. Google regularly charges $9.99 a month for this service.

For a limited time Google Play is taking 75% off one movie rental of your choice. That’s the largest discount we’ve seen on rentals from Google Play. To redeem this offer go to the movies page then scroll down and click on the red banner. All the popular movies above are available for this promotion plus a slew of other titles. The offer expires January 4th. Terms & Conditions

Also, Google Play is offering any one music album of your choice at 50% off the regular price. This special year-end savings is good until midnight January 4, 2016. Your discount will be shown at checkout. Just look for the orange banner on the music page to redeem this offer.

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