Google Remove Paytm From Play Store
- Paytm was removed from the Google Play Store on Friday. The app was removed for violating Google’s complex rules around online gambling, contests with cash prizes. Paytm has said that it is unavailable on Google Play Store due to some new updates and downloads. In a shocking turn of events, Paytm was removed from the Google Play Store on Friday.
- Paytm has been removed from the Play Store by Google. The app still remains functional on Android phones. Paytm as a platform can still be used from iPhones and PCs. In a rather surprising move, Google has taken down the app for the popular financial services platform, Paytm from its Play Store.
- Google has removed Paytm's mobile application from its mobile app store platform Play Store. The search engine giant has cited its policies on gaming and betting as the reason for the move.
In a rather surprising move, Google has taken down the app for the popular financial services platform, Paytm from its Play Store. The decision to remove the One97 Communications owned. Paytm, the payments and financial services app, had been removed from Google Play Store earlier in the day. Just today, in a blog post, Suzanne Frey Google’s vice president, product, Android.
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Hours after being taken down by Google from Play Store, the search engine giant has restored Paytm on Play Store. Paytm's founder - Vijay Shekhar Sharma through a tweet announced that the app is live on Google Play Store and was taken down because they launched a UPI cashback campaign.
Google on Friday took down one of the most used online payment apps Paytm from the Google Play Store. This meant, android smartphone users were not able to download or install the app for the time being. Google has also taken down PaytmFirstGames from the app store. The company has recently roped in Sachin Tendulkar as its ambassador.
Other Paytm apps such as Paytm For Business, Paytm Money and Paytm Mall are still available on the Play Store.
Paytm through its official Twitter handle had earlier said that the app will be back very soon.
“All your money is completely safe, and you can continue to enjoy your Paytm app as normal,” the company tweeted.
Paytm News
In a blog the company wrote: 'We recently launched the ‘Paytm Cricket League’ on our consumer app for users to engage in their passion of cricket and get cashback. The game allows users to get player stickers after each transaction, collect them and receive Paytm Cashback.
Today afternoon, we received communication from Google that they are suspending our app because they believe this to be a violation of their Play Store policies on gambling. The Paytm Android app has thus been unlisted from Google’s Play Store and is temporarily unavailable to users for new downloads or updates.'
The company had said that it has temporarily removed the cashback component in an effort to meet the Play Store policy requirements.
Meanwhile, Google’s vice-president of product, Android security and privacy, Suzanne Frey in a blog dated September 18 wrote: “We don’t allow online casinos or support any unregulated gambling apps that facilitate sports betting. This includes if an app leads consumers to an external website that allows them to participate in paid tournaments to win real money or cash prizes, it is a violation of our policies.”
Why Did Google Remove Paytm From Play Store
She further wrote that if an app violates their security policies then Google notifies the developer team and then removes the app from Google Play Store until the developer brings the app into compliances.
She said that if an app repeatedly violates Google’s policy, then Google can take serious action which may include terminating Google Play Developer accounts.
The blog did not, however, named Paytm.According to reports, Google has dropped more apps from the Play Store.
Akash Karmakar, partner, Law Offices of Panag & Babu said, 'While PayTM did not directly engage in, or promote sports betting or gambling, it did have links to third-party sites which did. The ease of using PayTM on these third-party apps may have been viewed by Google as the element which makes PayTM as supporting these sites. Google appears to have taken an ethical stand against apps which promote or even advertise unregulated gambling apps that facilitate sports betting. Since many other apps are also promoting betting and gambling websites through ads and pop-ups, if Google applies the same standard, I would expect more apps will get taken off the Play Store.'
Digital payments company Paytm returned to the Google Play Store on Friday, nearly five hours after it was taken down from the platform for alleged policy violation.
The company tweeted to confirm that it had been restored on the platform.
Paytm’s First Game Fantasy app was also taken down from the Google Play Store. The reason for the removal was not immediately clear. The tech giant had in a blog post referred to their policies on gambling.
Paytm had assured its users that the service will be restored soon. “It will be back very soon,” it had tweeted. “All your money is completely safe, and you can continue to enjoy your Paytm app as normal.”
“We don’t allow online casinos or support any unregulated gambling apps that facilitate sports betting,” Suzanne Frey, vice president of product, android security and privacy at Google, wrote in the blog.“This includes if an app leads consumers to an external website that allows them to participate in paid tournaments to win real money or cash prizes, it is a violation of our policies.”
This came as Paytm First Games was gearing up for fantasy cricket ahead of the Indian Premier League. Cricket fans bet on their favourite players and gain money depending on how the players have performed in real life.
Google added that it informs the developer about the policy violation and removes the app as the course of action until the policy guidelines are followed. “We have these policies to protect users from potential harm,” it added. “And in the case where there are repeated policy violations, we may take more serious action which may include terminating Google Play Developer accounts. Our policies are applied and enforced on all developers consistently.”
Paytm, one of the major players in India’s digital payments markets, was founded by Vijay Shekhar Sharma and is owned by One97 Communications Limited.