Earlier today, Google published a Chrome app in the Windows Store. At face value, that’s a big win for Microsoft: the Windows Store doesn’t have the, ahem, greatest choice of apps, so Google taking the time to make a Windows Store-compliant Chrome app would be a pat on the back for Microsoft.
Unfortunately, it turned out to be an elaborate troll from Google. The Windows Store Chrome app just gave users a download link to the standard Chrome download page, rather than a bespoke app.
Well, just a couple hours later, it seems that Microsoft spotted the troll, and it’s pulled the Google Chrome app from the Windows Store. “We have removed the Google Chrome Installer App from Microsoft Store, as it violates our Microsoft Store policies,” a Microsoft spokesperson told The Verge. “We welcome Google to build a Microsoft Store browser app compliant with our Microsoft Store policies,” the spokesperson said, referencing the need for apps to “provide unique and distinct value.”
Windows Store apps can be run by all Windows machines, including those running Windows 10 S, the lightweight version of Windows. Chrome, on the other hand, can’t be run by Windows 10 S computers. In order for Chrome to be a true Windows Store account, it would have to use Windows’s own rendering engines, which Google is loathe to do. So, don’t get too hyped for Chrome on Windows basically.
