And… Mitron is back on the Google Play Store

Google had said yesterday that Mitron might be brought back to the Play Store after they had spoken to the developers to fix some issues

The developers behind Mitron have listened and Google has pulled the app back on. The Mitron’s Play Store page now says that the app was updated on June 3, 2020. The Privacy Policy on the page has been updated as well and includes a section on GDPR Data Protection Rights. (HT Tech)

Mitron, the Indian alternative to TikTok, was pulled off the Google Play Store on June 2. “We don't allow apps that merely provide the same experience as other apps already on Google Play. Apps should provide value to users through the creation of unique content or services," Google explained. Mitron was inherently identical to the very popular short video streaming app TikTok. 

However, the app is back on the Play Store now. 

Google has said yesterday - "We've given this developer some guidance and once they've addressed the issue the app can go back up on Play."

The developers behind Mitron have listened and Google has pulled the app back on. The Mitron's Play Store page now says that the app was updated on June 3, 2020. The Privacy Policy on the page has been updated as well and includes a section on GDPR Data Protection Rights.

And that's not all, Mitron has also built and updated its promoter website. Earlier the promoter site was a blank page. 

Google was not wrong about Mitron delivering content that was essentially no different from other apps. The creators of Mitron had bought the code for the app from Pakistani developers Qboxus. Irfan Sheikh, the founder and CEO of Qboxus said that Mitron was no different from their TicTic app. The IIT students who developed Mitron basically took the code and uploaded it, without any changes, as the Mitron app on Google Play Store. 

In that form, Mitron was violating Google's ‘spam and minimum functionality' policy. As mentioned in Google's policy page, apps that copy content from others without making any original changes or adding value, violate the rules. 

“We don't allow apps that merely provide the same experience as other apps already on Google Play. Apps should provide value to users through the creation of unique content or services,” states the policy. In addition, the app should provide basic degree of functionality and a respectful user experience, the policy adds.

Google also removed the ‘Remove China Apps' from the Play Store. However, it does not look like that app is going to make a comeback.