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Ad-Blockers Kicked From Google Store
Tinman57:
Google kicks ad-blocker apps off Play store
Google has given several ad blocker apps the boot for being in violation of its developer distribution agreement.
Advertising blocking apps Ad Blocker, AdBlock Plus, AdAway and AdFree were all taken off Google Play overnight after Google enforced a term in its developer agreement prohibiting developers from disrupting others' services.
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http://www.zdnet.com/google-kicks-ad-blocker-apps-off-play-store-7000012610
Renegade:
I can see both sides of the fence there.
The terms don't outline what "unauthorised" means...
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But if the user installs it, it is clearly "authorised". That's hardly a question.
...but ad blockers clearly interfere with the ad-related services and revenues on Android. Adblock Plus for instance includes YouTube ads among the banners and popups it blocks, which is surely not good for the Google property.
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But how is it any different from blocking ads on a desktop/laptop? It's not. The only thing is that the people serving ads haven't "authorised" the ad blocker.
It seems to me that this is more corporate interference on users' property. Your phone belongs to YOU and not Google, so just how does Google get off saying what is and isn't authorised for your phone?
Then, there's whatever they want to put in their store... which makes sense. It's their store after all.
So, I can kind of see Google's point there. Google doesn't "authorise" the app, so that's the end of the story: Is the app "authorised" for the Google Play Store? Very similar to how Apple censors apps in their app store. Your house, your rules I suppose.
Guess it then comes down to whose house do you want to go over to?
TaoPhoenix:
I can see both sides of the fence there.
The terms don't outline what "unauthorised" means...
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But if the user installs it, it is clearly "authorised". That's hardly a question.
...but ad blockers clearly interfere with the ad-related services and revenues on Android. Adblock Plus for instance includes YouTube ads among the banners and popups it blocks, which is surely not good for the Google property.
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But how is it any different from blocking ads on a desktop/laptop? It's not. The only thing is that the people serving ads haven't "authorised" the ad blocker.
It seems to me that this is more corporate interference on users' property. Your phone belongs to YOU and not Google, so just how does Google get off saying what is and isn't authorised for your phone?
Then, there's whatever they want to put in their store... which makes sense. It's their store after all.
So, I can kind of see Google's point there. Google doesn't "authorise" the app, so that's the end of the story: Is the app "authorised" for the Google Play Store? Very similar to how Apple censors apps in their app store. Your house, your rules I suppose.
Guess it then comes down to whose house do you want to go over to?
-Renegade (March 14, 2013, 08:20 PM)
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Good attempt to be balanced, Ren!
However, I'm disturbed that after having "lost several battles" on desktops, once Mobile came around, suddenly companies saw a chance to start over and build in some nice new toys for themselves by locking down the OS's hard. So yes it's "Google's Store" (or, sideways, Apple's for the iPhone), but if the only way to get software onto the phone is through that store, it starts to make a disturbing chain where the sum of the pieces is far scarier than each piece presented "innocently" by itself. (Which is a MAJOR current brain-hack that media has really accelerated in the past 15 years or so!!)
>:(
I'm kinda disturbed exactly how we "allowed" this to arise in mobile space. What exactly makes a phone different in people's minds that lets them do all this stuff? "Ooh, it makes phone calls, and has a list of real-people contacts. I know! Let's let the companies take away all our freedoms!! Yay!! The Avengers made a cute little swipe at some of this "you! you BEG to be subjugated!!"
So okay, we have three companies who are "differently evil" (Apple, Google, MS). What will it take for some random bored 77 year old billionaire who is dying of cancer and so doesn't care about his money to make a "pure clean free" company?? That's what I wish would happen.
Carol Haynes:
However, I'm disturbed that after having "lost several battles" on desktops, once Mobile came around, suddenly companies saw a chance to start over and build in some nice new toys for themselves by locking down the OS's hard. So yes it's "Google's Store" (or, sideways, Apple's for the iPhone), but if the only way to get software onto the phone is through that store, it starts to make a disturbing chain where the sum of the pieces is far scarier than each piece presented "innocently" by itself. (Which is a MAJOR current brain-hack that media has really accelerated in the past 15 years or so!!)
-TaoPhoenix (March 14, 2013, 08:51 PM)
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Actually one of the good things about Android is you are not limited to PlayStore - you can download an installer file and install it manually outside the PlayStore eco-structure.
Just open Android browser to www.adblockplus.org and hey presto - two clicks and Adblock Plus is installed - having said that I am not impressed with the way it totally screws up websites on Android - never had any issues on the desktop but I went to http://uk.yahoo.com on Android's browser with and without AdBlockPlus enabled and the blocked site was completely unreadable and unusable. Removing Adblock plus now!
TaoPhoenix:
However, I'm disturbed that after having "lost several battles" on desktops, once Mobile came around, suddenly companies saw a chance to start over and build in some nice new toys for themselves by locking down the OS's hard. So yes it's "Google's Store" (or, sideways, Apple's for the iPhone), but if the only way to get software onto the phone is through that store, it starts to make a disturbing chain where the sum of the pieces is far scarier than each piece presented "innocently" by itself. (Which is a MAJOR current brain-hack that media has really accelerated in the past 15 years or so!!)
-TaoPhoenix (March 14, 2013, 08:51 PM)
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Actually one of the good things about Android is you are not limited to PlayStore - you can download an installer file and install it manually outside the PlayStore eco-structure.
-Carol Haynes (March 14, 2013, 08:57 PM)
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Nice to know! So then we just need to spread the word where to get adblockers from somewhere else than the store. : )
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