Google Pulls Fortnite From Play Store, But Game Remains Available Through Other Android Sources [Update: Epic Games Sues Google]

Just hours after Apple removed Fortnite from the App Store, Google has also pulled the Fortnite app from its Google Play Store.


Epic made the same in-app changes in the Google version of the app that it made in the App Store version, allowing players to bypass Google’s in-app purchase system. Subverting the Play Store in-app purchase system is against Google’s rules. From Google’s guidelines:

Developers offering products within a game downloaded on Google Play or providing access to game content must use Google Play In-app Billing as the method of payment.

Google in a statement to The Verge said that it has policies about in-app purchases that are designed to keep the Play Store safe for users. The statement is very similar to Apple’s, in fact.

The open Android ecosystem lets developers distribute apps through multiple app stores. For game developers who choose to use the Play Store, we have consistent policies that are fair to developers and keep the store safe for users. While Fortnite remains available on Android, we can no longer make it available on Play because it violates our policies. However, we welcome the opportunity to continue our discussions with Epic and bring Fortnite back to Google Play.

According to The Verge, Google clarified that it has no issue with Epic distributing the game on Android devices through other channels, but the rules for the Play Store must be followed for the app to be available through it.

Even though the app has been removed from the Play Store, it can still be used on Android. Fortnite can be downloaded through the Epic Games app or through the Samsung Galaxy Store.

Update: Epic Games has also levied a lawsuit against Google for removing Fortnite from the Google Play Store.

Tags: Epic Games, Fortnite

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Get PHP 5 Balik Bayad per liter whenever you use PayMaya at Petron!

To give their customers a safer option for paying whenever they gas up, Petron Corporation partnered with PayMaya.

Petron customers can get a cashback when they #ScanToPay

PHP 5 Balik Bayad, safer payment option

Motorist nationwide can now use their PayMaya accounts as a mode for contactless payment at any participating Petron stations all over the country.

To do that, they just have to scan the PayMaya QR code using their app. They can also opt to pay using their debit, credit cards, or other e-Wallet accounts via One by PayMaya.

According to Petron, contactless payment options at their stations are among their top priorities as they adjust to the new normal. With the payment solutions from PayMaya, the contact between our customers and service station personnel can be minimized.

To encourage the customers to use this new payment solution, PayMaya is giving off perks as part of its partnership program with Petron.

Motorists can get PHP 5 rebates per liter whenever they spend a minimum of PHP 300 (P100 starting on August 15) at Petron while using PayMaya QR. They can enjoy this bonus and earn up to P500 Balik Bayad per month as long as their PayMaya account is upgraded. 

Those who do not upgrade yet their account can still receive a one-time Balik Bayad of PHP 30 for a minimum spend of P250 (P100 starting on August 15). Just note that they have to upgrade their account after the transaction to receive it. Customers can avail of this offer on top of the 1 percent, 10 percent, or 100 percent Balik Bayad QR promo.

Promo runs until September 30 this year.

You can learn more about this promo by clicking this link.

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Fortnite pulled fron Google Play Store, but Android players can still get it

Credit: Ryan-Thomas Shaw/ Android Authority

• Google has pulled the popular game Fornite from the Google Play Store.
• This was due to Epic Games launching a new direct payment system inside the app.
• Google claims this feature violates its app store policies.

---

Just hours after Apple pulled the popular battle royale game Fortnite from its iOS App Store, Google has done the same thing. The company has now also removed the Android version of Fortnite from the Google Play Store.

Credit: Jon Fingas/ Android Authority

The removal of the game comes on the same day Epic Games launched a new direct payment system inside Fortnite. It offered up to a 20% discount to purchase Fortnite’s in-game V-Bucks currency compared to purchasing the same V-Bucks via Apple’s App Store or Google Play. Apple quickly removed the game from its app store today. In a statement, the company said the feature was not reviewed ahead of time by Apple and that it violated “the App Store guidelines regarding in-app payments that apply to every developer who sells digital goods or services.”

In a statement sent to Android Authority, Google cited similar reasons for removing Fortnite from Google Play:

The open Android ecosystem lets developers distribute apps through multiple app stores. For game developers who choose to use the Play Store, we have consistent policies that are fair to developers and keep the store safe for users. While Fortnite remains available on Android, we can no longer make it available on Play because it violates our policies. However, we welcome the opportunity to continue our discussions with Epic and bring Fortnite back to Google Play.

Epic has already announced it is taking legal action against Apple for removing Fortnite from the iOS App Store. So far, there’s no word on if it will do the same with Google.

Epic Games actually first launched Fortnite for Android in April 2018 outside the Google Play Store. However, in April 2020, the developer finally decided to offer the game via Google Play, concluding that Google “puts software downloadable outside of Google Play at a disadvantage” for various reasons.

Unlike iOS device owners, Android smartphone and tablet owners can still legally download and install Fortnite. This can be done via a web install, and Samsung device owners can download the game via its own Galaxy Store app.

Read: How to install Fortnite for Android

It will be interesting to see if Epic Games’ actions today could cause other developers to follow suit, and it Apple and Google might change their in-app policies as a result.

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G Suite accounts are slowly getting new Gmail experience with bundled chat, video, and files

Going after Slack and MS Teams, but is it trying to do too much?

• Update
  Updated with rollout details.

A month ago, Google announced that it would turn Gmail for G Suite into a hub encompassing all of Google's productivity platforms, with access to videoconferencing, chats, Docs, and more collaboration tools. The company is now ready to roll out this experience to the web and Android. It's expected to hit all domains with Chat preferred enabled by September 15.

As you can tell, this Gmail revamp will only come to G Suite organizations.

Read More

G Suite accounts are slowly getting new Gmail experience with bundled chat, video, and files was written by the awesome team at Android Police.

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Apple Shipped 15 Million iPhones in the U.S. in Q2 2020, a New Domestic Record

Apple shipped approximately 15 million iPhones in the United States in the second quarter of 2020, according to a new report shared by Canalys, setting a new domestic record.



Apple shipped 15 percent more iPhone 11 devices than last year's equivalent, iPhone XR. Most strikingly, iPhone SE was responsible for growing Apple's quarterly market share to 47 percent. Overall, Apple shipped 10 percent more devices compared to the same quarter of last year.

Vendors shipped 31.9 million smartphones in the United States in total. This represents a 5 percent year-on-year decline, but an 11 percent quarter-on-quarter increase. The reopening of manufacturing facilities in China at the end of March and retail stores reopening in May and June were key contributors to growth. Around 70 percent of smartphones shipped in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2020 were made in China, up 60 percent from the last quarter.



5G adoption was low in the second quarter of 2020, but is expected to increase as more 5G-connected devices come to market in the coming months. Apple is expected to contribute to this drive for 5G adoption with the release of 5G-enabled iPhones this fall.

"As the coronavirus pandemic forced consumers to stay at home, 5G adoption in the U.S. failed to take off. Store closures and virus fears limited interaction with demonstration models, tight consumer budgets further constrained spending power, and with scarce 5G network coverage in American suburbia, consumers saw plenty of reasons to buy a 4G device instead," Canalys Analyst Vincent Thielke said. "Despite the lackluster 5G roll-out so far, strong carrier marketing in coming quarters will be instrumental in catalyzing a multi-year transition period from LTE to 5G."

Canalys also noted the "perpetual state of uncertainty" hanging over smartphone vendors due to an escalation of tensions between the U.S. and China, but explained that this largely does not affect Samsung and LG.

"The worsening relationship has resulted in extreme instability that has global onlookers eagerly awaiting November's presidential election. This may guide the U.S.-China trade war into a new phase of détente – or reignite flare-ups," Thielke explained.

Apple and Samsung together account for seven out of every 10 devices sold. The average price of a smartphone in the U.S. dropped 10 percent compared to last year, down to $503. Canalys found that distributors are increasing orders for ultra-low-end Android smartphones from lesser-known brands, such as Unimax and Wiko. Google and other Android brands are increasing their exposure to the low-end and mid-range segments, and in addition to the success of ‌iPhone SE‌, it appears that the sub-$400 segment is poised to gain more prominence.

Tags: China, 5G, Canalys

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