Podcasts about COVID-19 exist, therefore Podcast Addict is a Covid-19 app.
What you need to know
The Play Store's policies currently warn "any apps referencing COVID-19, or related terms, in any form in their metadata will only be approved for distribution in the Play Store if they are published, commissioned or authorized by [official government entities and public health organizations]."
While it has helped clean up the Play Store from genuinely misleading apps, one podcast app—Podcast Addict—has fallen victim to an obtuse (or particularly robotic) reading of it.
While the spirit of the rule is the prevention of the spread of apps offering fake and dangerous health advice, a rather strict reading of it would lead to any apps with coronavirus content being removed from the Play Store.
This isn't a new thing for the app, Podcast Addict has been a victim of Google's , and other content apps like this are likely to fall victim in the future due to Googles mostly automatic Play Store content moderation.
What you need to know
- Podcast Addict pulled from the Google Play Store as a result of new COVID-19 rules.
- Google currently bans apps from "referencing COVID-19" unless they are endorsed by public health agencies.
- Some podcasts which can be accessed on the app do reference the virus and associated disease, triggering the ban.
The Play Store's policies currently warn "any apps referencing COVID-19, or related terms, in any form in their metadata will only be approved for distribution in the Play Store if they are published, commissioned or authorized by [official government entities and public health organizations]."
While it has helped clean up the Play Store from genuinely misleading apps, one podcast app—Podcast Addict—has fallen victim to an obtuse (or particularly robotic) reading of it.
While the spirit of the rule is the prevention of the spread of apps offering fake and dangerous health advice, a rather strict reading of it would lead to any apps with coronavirus content being removed from the Play Store.
This isn't a new thing for the app, Podcast Addict has been a victim of Google's , and other content apps like this are likely to fall victim in the future due to Googles mostly automatic Play Store content moderation.
As of now, the app has been suspended from the Play Store with no recourse other than to wait for the results of an appeal. In the meantime, anyone still interested in grabbing the app may download the APK file and sideload it.