So for a long time now, Apple has boasted more apps in its app store than Android has been able to offer. Android, however, is beginning to catch up. At least it was about to catch up. Its numbers may be about to take a hit, however, as Google has vowed to clean up the app store that appears in the Google Play section. Thing is, Apple has always had an approval process for apps; a process that has been, at various times, ultra-strict, eccentric, slow, and all sorts of other adjectives. Android has always flung the door open and spam apps and malware apps have been happy to waltz through the door and try to ruin all nice things for everyone.
From PC World:
The new rules are quite comprehensive. All Google Play apps must use Google’s own payment system for downloads or in-app purchases (except for physical goods and goods consumed outside the app). To reduce copycat apps, Google says app developers shouldn’t “pretend to be someone else” and may not “represent that [their] app is authorized by or produced by another company or organization if that is not the case.” Apps also should not have names or icons too similar to apps that ship with Android.
Google also gets specific in the new rules about not transmitting viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and malware, as well as about misleading product descriptions, repetitive content, ratings gaming, and apps that send automated SMS and email messages. There are also new rules regarding suspicious ad practices in apps: developers can no longer make ads look like system notifications or collect personal user data.
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