Google is facing more antitrust complaints regarding Android

[Bouzoo]

 

Another month, another Google antitrust complaint. The EC is investigating Google (again) due to concerns that it's promoting it's own apps over it's competitors. This time it's about a new company Disconnect that was founded by former Google employees. The app in question is an app that blocks advertisements and protects users in many ways (malware, tracking, etc.). The app was ejected from the Play Store in 2014 with an excuse that it was interfering with other apps (it was rejected later for the second time).

 

In a statement sent to Tech Crunch, Disconnect said:”Disconnect charges Google with abusing its dominant market position by banning Disconnect’s app, a revolutionary technology that protects users from invisible tracking and malvertising, malware served through advertisements”.

Google doesn’t often comment on anti-trust matters but it did comment on this particular complaints, saying: “This reported claim is baseless. Our Google Play policies (specifically clause 4.4) have long prohibited apps that interfere with other apps (such as by altering their functionality, or removing their way of making money). We apply this policy uniformly, and Android developers strongly support it. All apps must comply with these policies and there are over 200 privacy apps available in Google Play that do.”

Disconnect’s app has been thrown out of the Play Store twice and as you can probably tell, the company isn’t too happy about it and is now hitting back at Google by adding to its anti-trust woes in the EU.

 

SGoogle is a company ($$$) so this would not come to me as a surprise. An app that blocks advertisements? Less money for Google. But then again, Google is dominating everything so would they need to block an app like this? Or is this maybe just an angry company of ex Google employees trying to get back at former boss.

 

Source

[LegacyStijncat]

Add blocking is just bad. It's being scum. I can understand you block adds on malicious sites, but not on normal sites. Don't be that person.

But, if it helps against tracking and malware, I would take 5 copies!

[Castdeath97]

Add blocking is just bad. It's being scum. I can understand you block adds on malicious sites, but not on normal sites. Don't be that person.

But, if it helps against tracking and malware, I would take 5 copies!

If someone else (especially a kid) is using a computer, you better have them unless you want 20 toolbars and 20 pop ups.

[Trik'Stari]

Am I the only one who thinks "Canadian alien" when I see the android logo? Probably because of southpark

[Elapo]

Why are they even trying? Apps that block ads are not allowed on the play store, and neither should they be.

 

Many developers make money through them, and so does google. It's their store, it's not allowed and if you still do it, your app will be removed. How is that hard? Break the rules - face the consequences.

[spartaman64]

its their store they can do what they want and plus you can get the apk and download it that way if its not on the play store unlike ios devices. apple is the one who should be getting sued according to their logic

[Techhog]

Add blocking is just bad. It's being scum. I can understand you block adds on malicious sites, but not on normal sites. Don't be that person.

But, if it helps against tracking and malware, I would take 5 copies!

I agree 100%. You should never block adds. The same goes for subtracts, multiplies, and divides. Math is very important, and should never be blocked!

 

Cut the self-righteous bullshit please, especially when you can't spell a two-letter word properly. Nobody cares. The day that ads stop making annoying sounds, lasting 30+ seconds on 15 second videos and eating performance and battery life on my laptop is the day I'll stop using Adblock, and not a minute sooner.

[Murdoch]

its their store they can do what they want and plus you can get the apk and download it that way if its not on the play store unlike ios devices. apple is the one who should be getting sued according to their logic

 

Yepp, they have the right to curate their store how they see fit. Actually, to run an adblocker properly on Android, you need access to the hostsfile, which is only available if you Root your device. Which Google do not prevent in the slightest, nor do they prevent you installing APKs from any other source. Anybody that wants to Root their device and run Adaway is completely free to do so. All Google are guilty of here, is not making that process ridiculously easy.

[dfsdfgfkjsefoiqzemnd]

Yepp, they have the right to curate their store how they see fit. Actually, to run an adblocker properly on Android, you need access to the hostsfile, which is only available if you Root your device. Which Google do not prevent in the slightest, nor do they prevent you installing APKs from any other source. Anybody that wants to Root their device and run Adaway is completely free to do so. All Google are guilty of here, is not making that process ridiculously easy.

Indeed, nothing stops you from searching for such apps on the PC (feel free to use Google for that) and side-loading them. Of course you run the risk of getting malware that way, but you can get that just as easily if you stick to the Play Store.

[spartaman64]

Yepp, they have the right to curate their store how they see fit. Actually, to run an adblocker properly on Android, you need access to the hostsfile, which is only available if you Root your device. Which Google do not prevent in the slightest, nor do they prevent you installing APKs from any other source. Anybody that wants to Root their device and run Adaway is completely free to do so. All Google are guilty of here, is not making that process ridiculously easy.

i dont see how much easier they can make it. you go on your device's web browser and go to the website then download the file. then on the notifications tap on it when its finished downloading and there is an option to install

[LegacyStijncat]

Cut the self-righteous bullshit please, especially when you can't spell a two-letter word properly. Nobody cares.

Thank you very much!

Thanks again!

You're denying Linus, and any other Youtuber, to earn their money doing their jobs. No big deal!

Also, self-righteous? How am I helped by not blocking adds?

[ShadowCaptain]

Am I the only one who thinks "Canadian alien" when I see the android logo? Probably because of southpark

 

You are not alone

[Murdoch]

i dont see how much easier they can make it.

 

I was talking about Rooting + Sideloading. Ofc installing an APK manually is very straightforward.

 

And I know Adblock+ offer a non-root version from their website, but it sucks, you have to run all your data through their proxy, because they don't have access to the hosts file.

[TroubleKlef]

I agree 100%. You should never block adds. The same goes for subtracts, multiplies, and divides. Math is very important, and should never be blocked!

 

Cut the self-righteous bullshit please, especially when you can't spell a two-letter word properly. Nobody cares. The day that ads stop making annoying sounds, lasting 30+ seconds on 15 second videos and eating performance and battery life on my laptop is the day I'll stop using Adblock, and not a minute sooner.

[KirbyTech]

Yepp, they have the right to curate their store how they see fit. Actually, to run an adblocker properly on Android, you need access to the hostsfile, which is only available if you Root your device. Which Google do not prevent in the slightest, nor do they prevent you installing APKs from any other source. Anybody that wants to Root their device and run Adaway is completely free to do so. All Google are guilty of here, is not making that process ridiculously easy.

Exactly, I don't see anything wrong with what they are doing. Most apps would not be able to live on and be updated without ad money. I am also sick of the damm EU and the shit over there, it seems someone every month is like so how can we try to fuck google over. 

[Murdoch]

Exactly, I don't see anything wrong with what they are doing. Most apps would not be able to live on and be updated without ad money. I am also sick of the damm EU and the shit over there, it seems someone every month is like so how can we try to fuck google over. 

 

There does seem to be a bit of an agenda against Google coming from the EU. Honestly I think it suspicion of Google mostly comes from the Snowden revelations, and privacy concerns. I'm on the fence on this issue. Google to me, are great innovators, but they are also one of those companies I have phased out, because I am bored of their core business model and their incessant data collection. Besides, the more awkward the EU is towards companies like Google, makes me hopeful that TTIP gets crushed, because fuck TTIP.

[Techhog]

Thank you very much!

Thanks again!

You're denying Linus, and any other Youtuber, to earn their money doing their jobs. No big deal!

Also, self-righteous? How am I helped by not blocking adds?

First of all, they have their sponsors. Second:

self-right·eous

adjective

 

1. having or characterized by a certainty, especially an unfounded one, that one is totally correct or morally superior.

    

[LegacyStijncat]

 

First of all, they have their sponsors. Second:

self-right·eous

adjective

 

1. having or characterized by a certainty, especially an unfounded one, that one is totally correct or morally superior.

    

 

Convincing people to give content creators the money they deserve, at the cost of 5s of a mouse click? I agree that some adds are irritating. Those 20s adds, that you can't skip, need to be destroyed in a pit of fire. But most adds are pressing x or waiting 5 seconds. It's the least we could do for content creators, that make it for us, while we don't have to pay.

[Murdoch]

 It's the least we could do for content creators, that make it for us, while we don't have to pay.

 

Actually the least we could do is absolutely nothing.

[LegacyStijncat]

Actually the least we could do is absolutely nothing.

Somewhere this makes sense

[Opcode]

Disconnect is the only extension that I run within Chrome to make browsing faster (adblock etc fails to speed up page times).

 

[Techhog]

Convincing people to give content creators the money they deserve, at the cost of 5s of a mouse click? I agree that some adds are irritating. Those 20s adds, that you can't skip, need to be destroyed in a pit of fire. But most adds are pressing x or waiting 5 seconds. It's the least we could do for content creators, that make it for us, while we don't have to pay.

Okay, now you're just being a dick with spelling thing.

 

No, it's not 5 seconds. There are cases where I want to watch a 10-second video, but I need to watch a 30-second ad first. The there are the  ads that make sounds, the ads that cover the screen, the ads playing a video on a web page, the ads which pretend to be a the download link on the page you're trying to download from... If a site doesn't have those issues, I'll leave AdBlock off, but for the ones which do, I give no sympathy. 

 

As for you, you need to just mind your own business. Don't call people scum for not having the same morals as you. Forcing your ideals onto people is far more scummy.

 

Also, for the record, I agree with Google's decision to reject the app. It's not allowed on the store, so they can't complain. Simple as that.

[LegacyStijncat]

Okay, now you're just being a dick with spelling thing.

 

No, it's not 5 seconds. There are cases where I want to watch a 10-second video, but I need to watch a 30-second ad first. The there are the  ads that make sounds, the ads that cover the screen, the ads playing a video on a web page, the ads which pretend to be a the download link on the page you're trying to download from... If a site doesn't have those issues, I'll leave AdBlock off, but for the ones which do, I give no sympathy. 

 

As for you, you need to just mind your own business. Don't call people scum for not having the same morals as you. Forcing your ideals onto people is far more scummy.

Objectively, blocking adds is scum. Because your denying people money. Subjectively, adds are going too far. Can't argue with that.

Also, I don't force my ideals into people. I just say that objectively, it's scummy. I never said I was better than anyone, I did say that denying content creators money is wrong.

[Techhog]

Objectively, blocking adds is scum. Because your denying people money. Subjectively, adds are going too far. Can't argue with that.

Also, I don't force my ideals into people. I just say that objectively, it's scummy. I never said I was better than anyone, I did say that denying content creators money is wrong.

Yeah, I can't take you seriously when you're purposefully misspelling a word/using the wrong word like that (not to mention how you used "your" there) and calling an opinion "objective." 

[Murdoch]

Objectively, blocking adds is scum. Because your denying people money. Subjectively, adds are going too far. Can't argue with that.

Also, I don't force my ideals into people. I just say that objectively, it's scummy. I never said I was better than anyone, I did say that denying content creators money is wrong.

 

This is an incredibly simplistic outlook. Advertising networks aren't just dishing out adverts. They have gained a market dominance, and enabled a system that collects it's "consumers" data on a level that is totally unacceptable. Their market dominance also ensures that there is no other option, other than to accept this, or block it. We have to break this false dichotomy that this is the only way to fund content creators or deny them money by adblocking. The truth is, for the amount we give up (in privacy) the content creators receive very little, adsense to me is worthless, and I will never support it. I will not give up my right to privacy so Linus gets 0.02 cents per my view of some shitty advert.

 

Linus might not totally like this stance, but he accepts it, which is why he offers alternative funding options. Such as Vessel, Sponsorships, donations, or T-Shirt sales etc.