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F-Droid and Google's Developer Registration Decree - Google’s move to break free app distribution (f-droid.org)
submitted 2 days ago by throws_lemy@lemmy.nz to c/android@lemdro.id
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The future of this elegant and proven system was put in jeopardy last month, when Google unilaterally decreed that Android developers everywhere in the world are going to be required to register centrally with Google. In addition to demanding payment of a registration fee and agreement to their (non-negotiable and ever-changing) terms and conditions, Google will also require the uploading of personally identifying documents[^regid], including government ID, by the authors of the software, as well as enumerating all the unique “application identifiers” for every app that is to be distributed by the registered developer.

If it were to be put into effect, the developer registration decree will end the F-Droid project and other free/open-source app distribution sources as we know them today, and the world will be deprived of the safety and security of the catalog of thousands of apps that can be trusted and verified by any and all. F-Droid’s myriad users5 will be left adrift, with no means to install — or even update their existing installed — applications.

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[-] Renohren@lemmy.today 23 points 2 days ago

It's up to us, users of those FOSS apps, to collectively pour more money into the pockets of FOSS devs to make f-droid more important to their bottom line (and for a lot of FOSS apps that are also distributed on the play store, it won't be hard to be a bigger financial input) so that when the requirement is pushed to their play store account, they feel free to decide to side with their hearts and say goodbye play store, knowing this community will keep them fed.

Time for many of us to get aquainted with the liberapay button on most app pages in f-droid.

[-] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 11 points 1 day ago

If Google was smart they would hammer out some sort of agreement with F-droid

I'm not sure they are that smart

[-] 100_kg_90_de_belin@feddit.it 21 points 1 day ago

They are rich, they don't need to be smart

[-] absentbird@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

Once you reach orbit you can fall forever and never crash.

[-] Fedizen@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

Didn't apple just lose some court cases about this?

[-] Nighed@feddit.uk 75 points 2 days ago

Oh, it's preventing sidloading?! I thought it was just for their app store!

That's shit.

[-] stray@pawb.social 6 points 1 day ago

If I understood correctly it doesn't prevent sideloading, but even apps not from the app store will need to have their creator's legal identity verified by Google. Meaning not only do they have to dox themselves, but they have to pay Google for the privilege. And if it's an app developed to not comply with Goggle's terms then it just won't be usable at all.

[-] MasterBlaster@lemmy.world 1 points 4 hours ago

I see a mass migration to LineageOS, Graphene, Calyx in the very near future.

[-] Scrollone@feddit.it 3 points 1 day ago

Stop calling it "sideloading" as if it was something bad. Let's all call it "installing apps"

[-] Eagle0110@lemmy.world 53 points 2 days ago

Yes, some of the latest commits to AOSP repo added code to the Package Installer app for denying .apk package installation based on developer verification result, and even for denying installing .apk packages when internet isn't available so it can't contact Google's servers for developer verification results. Google is already making it clear this kind BS is how they intend to enforce this ridiculous decree.

[-] MasterBlaster@lemmy.world 1 points 4 hours ago

It is open source. Just remove that code, build, use F-Droid.

[-] xep@discuss.online 25 points 2 days ago

That's egregious and really will impede using open source software on Android. Guess my phone will turn into a device for tethering now, instead.

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[-] Cris_Color@lemmy.world 47 points 2 days ago* (last edited 22 hours ago)

I wish more people focused a bit more on the need to agree to terms and conditions, I didn't know that was a part of this issue and that massively increases the negative impact of this potential policy change

Google's terms and conditions are consistently draconian and stupid. Especially if it's the same terms and conditions applied to the play store, where apps constantly get pulled and devs are always frustrated as hell

Edit: I think pretty much everyone who replied regarding terms and conditions misunderstood what I meat, which leads me to believe I may have communicated poorly. My point is that early news coverage didn't mention independent apps needing to follow Google terms and conditions.

That's not just a privacy issue for devs, that's an issue of Google wanting control over what the apps and actually do, and it changes how severe of a problem this is. I've also learned since then that this may mean only the devs can distribute apps(?), which would potentially kill f-droid outside of custom roms (I still don't fully understand that part but that idea was also not in early coverage)

[-] 0_o7@lemmy.dbzer0.com 39 points 2 days ago

Google's terms and conditions are consistently draconian and stupid.

They are not stupid, they are just intentionally malicious.

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[-] brucethemoose@lemmy.world 12 points 2 days ago

What's China going to do? Fork Android more officially?

[-] olbaidiablo@lemmy.ca 8 points 2 days ago

I could see China pouring a lot of resources into Linux phones.

[-] brucethemoose@lemmy.world 9 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

AFAIK Huawei already forks Android (and the Play Store) for their stuff, but I have zero knowledge beyond that.

[-] Ilandar@lemmy.today 6 points 2 days ago

Yes, but it is locked down since HarmonyOS NEXT and requires workarounds to install apps outside of their app store.

[-] pycorax@sh.itjust.works 6 points 2 days ago

Their so called written from scratch Harmony OS is just forked Android.

[-] scrubbles@poptalk.scrubbles.tech 25 points 2 days ago

But what can we do beyond letting out elected officials who don't care know about it? How can we really push back against Google for doing this?

[-] ProdigalFrog@slrpnk.net 15 points 2 days ago

Donate to PostmarketOS so that we have a polished Linux alternative to Android.

https://postmarketos.org/

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[-] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 4 points 1 day ago

Elected officials can only do so much as people still need to care. Eenshitification will drive people into other platforms if it gets bad enough.

[-] Eagle0110@lemmy.world 13 points 2 days ago

Only purchase devices you can unlock bootloader and root, then bypass this with an Xposed module that hooks into Package Installer like how you would bypass Google's stupid minimal SDK version requirement for side-loading that's already enforced for years.

Google has made it absolutely clear that for years there's absolutely no reason you should ever use an Android device without root anymore than you should use a personal Linux device without sudo lol

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this post was submitted on 29 Sep 2025
452 points (100.0% liked)

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