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Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

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Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#61

Post by tablespoon »

asdfasgasdgasdg wrote: post #16
noneeeed wrote: post #4

Based on the frequency with which this sort of post gets significant traction it's pretty clear that no one at Google gives a crap about this issue. I find it hard to imagine that people in Google are unaware of this problem. I often wonder if this has happened to people with more clout who have managed to pull strings to get it sorted, or if Google have just got lucky and managed to avoid hitting someone who might a…

> Based on the frequency with which this sort of post gets significant traction it's pretty clear that no one at Google gives a crap about this issue. Lots of other reasonable explanations that match the available evidence and involve Google caring about this issue. For example, their hands could be tied by legal forces beyond their control. Or they could care a great deal, but perhaps they have been unable to resolv…

> Lots of other reasonable explanations that match the available evidence and involve Google caring about this issue...

Or, more likely: they "care," but not enough to actually spend the money to fix the problem (e.g. quit relying so much on algorithms, and staff a department of real people to apply some human judgement).

My understanding is there's a cultural problem at Google, where they think stuff like this must be done algorithmically, even if it's not a actually a job for an algorithm.

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#62

Post by koolba »

throwaquestion5 wrote: post #55
ShivShankaran wrote: post #2

It is well known that if Google bans your account it will ban any "related" account and that includes your immediate family including your spouse, parents, children and your official job/startup. I never understood this bizarre behaviour from Google. My colleagues got a taste of it when they shared their laptop and one of them had a banned account. It was a defence project and the work computers were not allowed to h…

> It is well known that if Google bans your account it will ban any "related" account and that includes your immediate family including your spouse, parents, children and your official job/startup. I find this behavior terrifying. Destroying people's accounts just for having the same blood as someone deemed ban-able. Guilt by association taken to the extreme

This sounds like a potent weapon. Figure out a way to share computer with your enemies / competitors and then get them banned by association.

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#63

Post by nonbirithm »

heavyset_go wrote: post #34
mohamez wrote: post #22

At this point competition is one of the great solution to this problem.

Unfortunately, as of September of last year, Google Play's terms and conditions match Apple's App Store's terms and conditions, in that apps must use Google's payment method and cannot advertise or include links to alternate methods of paying for the app or distributing it. Ultimately, these policies are meant to further restrict viability of competition by either company.

Just a few days ago Google announced that you could use Spotify's payment method as an alternative to Google play. The top-rated HN comment for that article was: "As a user, why would I choose this?"[0]

Competition only works if the competition is effective enough to change user habits. For the average person not educated in monopolies or tech regulation, is there any incentive for them to switch to paying Spotify instead?

Other examples of frustration induced by competition are:

- Epic Games Store timed exclusives (people would rather just use Steam)

- The fragmentation of streaming video across a dozen different paid services, each with their own exclusive licensed content (people would rather just save money by paying for a single service with everything on it).

[0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30782735

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#64

Post by fredgrott »

protomyth wrote: post #11

I still think some congress person needs to pass a consumer rights bill that forces companies like this to disclose the exact reason and data relating the account termination. The excuse of security practices should not come before consumer rights. Frankly, we would ALL also be safer if the decision had to be made based on conduct on that specific service and could not include anything outside that service. There is…

problems:

1. How exactly do propose a bill to limit a company in how they use their property and enforce use of that property by an end user?

2. Bad actors out number good actors with honest accidents at over 1 million to one and obviously disclosing gives unequal advantage to the bad actors and harms the one accident good actor.

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#65

Post by heavyset_go »

LinAGKar wrote: post #60
davidg109 wrote: post #9

Unfortunately, anytime you depend on a third party whether it be Google, Amazon, Facebook, etc., this is the exact risk you take. Don’t feed the dragon.

What's the alternative? Google essentially has a monopoly on distributing Android apps.

This. If you want to make any kind of mobile app, you have to deal with the Apple and Google duopoly that's had a stranglehold on the mobile app distribution market for over a decade now.

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#66

Post by naoqj »

hwers wrote: post #27

For anyone curious about what kinds of apps this person developed, this is what I could find https://steprimo.com/iphone/ph/developer/1076545147/Roberto-... Seems like an app providing radio for free.

Looks like he had lots of radio apps, wallpapers, etc. Probably copyright-related problems.

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#67

Post by abriosi »

ocdtrekkie wrote: post #44
WinterMount223 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did their accounts end up permanently banned or could they recover them? Seems like something that could actually be abused if not. A weaponized banned Google account on a laptop. A laptop with cooties. The seven generations punishment.

Maybe this is the key to actually getting Google to fix this. Weaponize Google bans to the point it's unsustainable for their business.

It is unfortunate that this will eventually happen

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#68

Post by pollomonteros »

KaoruAoiShiho wrote: post #38
hwers wrote: post #27

For anyone curious about what kinds of apps this person developed, this is what I could find https://steprimo.com/iphone/ph/developer/1076545147/Roberto-... Seems like an app providing radio for free.

Can't read spanish but possibly piracy problems?

I can and it seems to be an app to listen to Latin American radios specialized in Cumbia music. I am not sure of the legality of it ,though,since there are already a handful of online radio players available and those seem to be doing just fine as far as I am aware. Maybe it gave access to some paywalled content ? Either that or some algorithm thought it was something illegal and flagged it as a such.

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#69

Post by spoiler »

ocdtrekkie wrote: post #44
WinterMount223 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did their accounts end up permanently banned or could they recover them? Seems like something that could actually be abused if not. A weaponized banned Google account on a laptop. A laptop with cooties. The seven generations punishment.

Maybe this is the key to actually getting Google to fix this. Weaponize Google bans to the point it's unsustainable for their business.

They are weaponised already unfortunately. There are HN stories of competitors reporting devs/apps and them getting irrevocably banned without a platform to complain on/to. I used to like/defend Google, but they keep disappointing.

I even have Google-anxiety and am considering moving everything away before it becomes too late

Re: Google cancels Google Play publisher account and ends family’s source of income

#70

Post by devoutsalsa »

aaomidi wrote: post #36
protomyth wrote: post #11

I still think some congress person needs to pass a consumer rights bill that forces companies like this to disclose the exact reason and data relating the account termination. The excuse of security practices should not come before consumer rights. Frankly, we would ALL also be safer if the decision had to be made based on conduct on that specific service and could not include anything outside that service. There is…

Actually it should go one more step further. Companies making over a certain amount should be banned from outright removing your access to your account. At most it should be making the account read only. People have a right to their photos, emails, conversations, and data they have safeguarded to these companies.

I think I agree with you, but I will say I don’t envy Google’s position on this one. They have massive amounts of fraud and spam to contend with. Coming up with a system that allows them to retain legit uses but prevents them from shutting down naughty people doesn’t sound good. There need to be a mechanism that allows account recovery in a way that is actually sustainable.
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