The article is AdGuard centric but it sheds light on the whole process where Google suddenly decided to ban ad blockers.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
At the time, there were a number of apps on Google Play that offered content filtering functionality, such as AdAway, AdFree, Ad Blocker, and AdBlock Plus.
In 2016, Google tweaked its developer policy to clarify what actions are prohibited, and for the first time directly named ad blockers as a target.
After AdGuard for Android, which filters traffic for all apps on your device, could no longer be distributed through the Google Play Store, we had to find another way to reach our users and provide them with updates.
The increased visibility this store provides would allow us to introduce the app to more people who can block ad-based tracking, thereby protecting their privacy.
The reality is that most casual users install apps exclusively from the Google Play Store, and that means they are currently missing out on a chance to protect themselves from trackers and ads.
We hope that Google will change its stance and give people the choice and tools to protect themselves from pervasive tracking technology and invasive advertising.
The original article contains 1,019 words, the summary contains 172 words. Saved 83%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
The article seems to gloss over the WHY part, and is really focus on the WHAA part.
Google is fundamentally an Ad-company - so promoting ad-blockers is bad for their revenue.
Not promoting them is one thing; but as the primary distributor of android apps, outright blocking them is absurd.
“you’re not allowed to access my competitors” - google.
Especially when ad networks are leveraged to distribute malware.
Their current anti-trust lawsuit comes to mind…
/e spelling
