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Did Google just ruin the Android app store?

Updated Dec 19th, 2018 8:57PM EST
Android Apps Search
Image: Zach Epstein, BGR

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Apple’s iOS App Store is an interesting place. It houses more than 1.3 million apps that combine to make up the best mobile app ecosystem on the planet. It also features what may very well be the absolute worst search technology on the planet. Finding good apps using the App Store’s in-built search function is next to impossible, which is a big part of the reason we spend so much time here at BGR sharing great iPhone apps with our readers.

The Google Play app store for Android is a different story… for now, at least.

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Google is now the maker of the most widely used mobile platform on the planet, but it is of course a search and advertising company first. Google doesn’t charge users in most cases when it comes to the company’s apps and services, and that’s because Google makes most of its money by collecting personal data

In my eyes, this is a good thing. A great thing, even. Some people aren’t as happy with Google’s model though, and they regularly claim that the company is “evil.”

I love how “evil” Google is in this regard.

Now, however, Google’s ads are headed somewhere they haven’t been in the past, and people are already starting to complain that Google is ruining its app store. But is it really?

As noted on Thursday morning by Recode, Google has announced that it will soon add new advertisements to Google Play in the form of sponsored search results. This GIF shows how it will work:

To many users, this won’t be a big deal at all. As is the case with search results on Google.com, you’ll now see a few sponsored posts at the top of the page. To others, however, this new move will make it harder to find the apps you’re looking for in Google Play, and that can certainly be viewed as a negative.

What do you think?

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.