Google Play
As previously stated, Google Play (also known as Google Play Store) is a digital distribution service owned and created by Google. It was formerly known as the Android Market. It serves as the official app store for approved devices running the Android operating system and its derivatives, as well as Chrome OS, and it allows users to browse and download apps created using the Android software development kit (SDK) and published via Google's Play store. As a digital media shop, Google Play sells music, books, movies, and television shows, as well as other digital content. A web browser, as well as the Android and iOS applications, may be used to view content that has been bought via Google Play Movies & TV or Google Play Books.
Google Play offers a variety of applications, some of which are free and others which are not. Alternatively, they may be installed on an Android device directly via the proprietary Play Store mobile application, or by distributing the programme to a device directly from the Google Play web page. It is possible to target users of particular hardware components, such as a motion sensor (for motion-dependent games) or a front-facing camera, with applications that make advantage of the hardware capabilities of the device (for online video calling). After a purge of apps, the Google Play store had over 82 billion app downloads in 2016, reached over 3.5 million apps released in 2017, and is now back to more than 3 million apps. Several security problems have arisen as a result of this, including the approval and uploading of harmful software to the store, which users then downloaded with various degrees of severity, among other things.
With the introduction of Google Play on March 6, 2012, the company brought together the Android Market as well as its own search engine under one brand, signalling a change in the company's digital distribution strategies. In December 2020, Google Play will be phased down in favour of YouTube Music, which will replace the services now available on the platform. As a result of their rebranding, Google has progressively increased the regional coverage of each of its services over time.