Google Deletes 1.1m Apps from Play Store

During the first half (H1) of 2022, Google removed over 1.1 million apps from its mobile application store Google Play.

This is according to data from SportsLens.com, which noted that as one of the two largest distribution channels for mobile apps, Google Play has significantly cut down the number of available apps since the beginning of the year.

The firm analysed data from the Google Play app repository, as well as other platforms such as Statista and App Figures.

With more than 1.1 million apps having been removed from the Google Play Store in H1 2022, SportsLens said this is the second-largest decrease since 2018.

SportsLens.com says over the years, Google Play witnessed a surge in revenue and the number of downloads.

It notes the Statista and App Figures data showed that in 2020, Android users could choose from 3.1 million apps.

By mid-2021, this number jumped to 3.8 million and continued rising. In December last year, nearly 4.7 million apps were available to Android users, the highest number to date, says SportsLens.

“However, to ensure the quality and trustworthiness of the apps within its app market, Google has released a series of policies to regulate app developers. As a result, thousands of low-quality and policy-violating apps have been removed by Google Play periodically,” it notes.

“One of such significant cut-downs has been made over the past six months. Statistics show Google removed more than a staggering 1.3 million apps from its app store in the first quarter of this year alone, with the total number of apps falling to 3.3 million.”

However, it explains the negative trend stopped in the second quarter, when the number of apps increased to 3.5 million.

In comparison, according to the firm, the number of available apps in the Apple App Store rose from over two million, to nearly 2.2 million in the first half of the year.

Besides delisting a massive number of apps from its app store, SportsLens points out Google Play also witnessed a negative trend in the number of downloads and gross app revenue in the first half of the year.

Statista and Sensor Tower data show consumer spending on in-app purchases, subscriptions and premium apps in the first half of 2022 amounted to $21.3 billion, down by 7% compared to the same period a year ago.

Also, the app store for Android users reported 55.3 billion downloads in the first six months, a 700 million drop year-over-year, SportsLens explains.

On the other hand, it notes, total App Store revenue in H1 2022 amounted to $43.7 billion worldwide, a 5.5% increase compared to the year-ago period.

Statistics also show iPhone users made roughly 16 billion downloads in this period, or 400 million less than in the first half of 2021.

source – ITweb