2.Over the years, Google Play has evolved into a one-stop platform for downloading apps and other content, including Google Play Books, Google Play Music, and Google Play Movies & TV.Over 110 billion apps and games were downloaded on Google Play last year.Consumers spent $42.3 billion on Google Play apps and games in 2022.We have collected data and statistics on the Google Play Store. Several big name developers have complained to legislators in the European Union and United States Congress about the inability to compete with Google on Android. Similar to Apple, Google has faced complaints from major developers and open-source advocates that this closed-system approach is bad for developers and competition. Samsung, HTC, and other manufacturers launched third-party stores in the 2010s, but without the ability to offer them to Android users outside their own customers, developers paid them little interest. As part of the contract manufacturers sign up to when using Google’s own Android fork, the Google Play Store and other Google services must be pre-installed.Īlongside Google not allowing third-party app stores to be installed via the web or added to the Google Play Store, it has effectively shut off all competitor app stores. It has partly succeeded, with consumer spending on Google Play almost doubling since 2018, however it is still far behind Apple.Įven though Android at its core is an open-source project, with any developer or manufacturer able to create their own version of it, Google’s proprietary version is the one almost every smartphone uses. Even though Google Play is far larger in terms of users, the Apple App Store has much higher consumer spending. On top of improving quality control, Google has also spent the past few years trying to drive more revenue to its publishers.

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