Skip to main content

Google Play app store returns to China

Google may be fast learning how to let bygones be bygones, especially when there’s a huge potential untapped market in play. After leaving altogether in 2010 following a highly publicized censorship battle, the tech company may be returning to China with the Google Play app store. And considering Apple’s recent success in convincing Chinese developers to write apps for its own app store, it’s no coincidence that Google is recognizing that now is as good a time as any to get back in the game.

Last quarter, China was the biggest market in the world for app downloads from the Apple app store, though the United States still led in terms of paid downloads. But with this sort of opportunity, Google simply can’t afford to ignore the Chinese market anymore, and according to Shanghai’s China Business News, the tech giant is deep in conversations to reintroduce the play store to billions of potential new customers.

Recommended Videos

Back in February, Google senior vice president of products Sundar Pichai told Forbes, “I see it (China) as a huge opportunity in which we are playing as an enabling platform today and hopefully we have a chance to offer other services in the future.” And now, just four months later, Wang Yanhui, director of Mobile China Alliance, has told Chinese outlets that he expects the search engine to soon be making an appearance in overseas markets, offering its sizable bevy of apps and games to eager consumers.

But just because Google enters the Chinese market doesn’t mean it will command it. Qihoo360’s 360 Mobile Assistant and Chinese search engine Baidu both have app stores of their own that are hugely popular in their home countries. And of course, Google faces the additional hurdle of some of their services’ bans in the highly censored nation. Rockchip Electronics senior vice president Chen Feng noted, “The problem Google has now is that its Gmail and map are blocked (in China). The key question is whether the government will lift the ban.”

Still, if Google is being allowed to enter the Chinese market, this may bode well for a number of other American technology companies that are also currently locked out of the country. So bury a hatchet Google, and perhaps open up the doors for the rest of us.

Lulu Chang
Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…
Why do health apps fail? Research bursts the hype with clear evidence
Someone holding an iPhone with the Apple Fitness app open, showing the Custom Plans feature.

Earlier today, Apple announced plans for its next health study that aims to connect information collected by wearables with all major types of wellness markers. The idea is to build atop the massive corpus of data provided by users and develop new digital health tools, covering both sensor and software-based solutions.

But are we relying too much on these digital health tools, despite not getting any meaningful benefits? Experts at the Technical University of Munich have just published their findings in a research paper, and it says the positive impact of telemedicine and exercise apps is minimal for at-risk people.

Read more
A native Android Apple TV app is now in the Google Play store
The Apple TV app on a Samsung Android phone.

It's been five years since the Apple TV app was launched, and we're now getting a version for Android devices -- built from the ground up for native Android integration -- in the Google Play store that will have the same Apple TV+ functionality as the Apple ecosystem version. The new app means users with Android OS 10 or later will finally have the ability to sign up for Apple TV+ on their Android-based phones and tablets to watch shows and movies like Severance, Silo, Killers of the Flower Moon, and CODA. There will be no difference in pricing on Android compared to Apple.

This should enable seamless interactivity across platforms for features such as Continue Watching -- which keeps track of where you are in a show or movie and allows you to pick up from that spot when you return, regardless of the device you watch on. Customer's Watchlist will be kept up to date across devices as well, and since purchases are linked to your Apple account, all the content you own will be accessible on any device with the new updated app. One thing missing at launch, though, will be the ability to cast Apple TV content from your Android device.

Read more
You can officially download the TikTok app again on Android phones
Download page for TikTok app on Android in the US.

The TikTok app has not returned to the Google Play Store or Apple’s App Store, ever since it went dark in the US with a ban looming over its head. That means fresh downloads are not possible on Android and Apple smartphones. Things have finally eased, at least for Android fans.

The official TikTok website now lists the software package that lets users download the app directly, instead of an app repository such as the Google Play Store. Third-party websites have hosted the app's software bundle for a while, but that route usually comes with the risk of malware.

Read more