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UC Browser Mobile App Disappears From Google Play Store (medianama.com)

Posted by msmash on from the what's-happening? dept.

UC Browser, a popular mobile web browser owned by China's Alibaba Group, has mysteriously disappeared from the Google Play Store. The app was pulled from the Google Play Store on November 12, according to data from app analytics firm App Annie. Several users began inquiring about the app's whereabouts earlier this week on Reddit. It was not immediately clear why UC Browser had been pulled from Android's marquee app store. According to Twitter user Mike Ross, who claims to be a developer at Alibaba Group, Google pulled UC Browser from its store due to "misleading" and "unhealthy" promotional tactics used by the company to increase the install count of its app. UC Browser is still available to download on Apple's App Store, Amazon's Android store, and through company's official website. UC Browser Mini, a light version of the company's browser is notably still listed on Google Play. Though UC Browser is not a household name in the Western markets, the Alibaba's app is incredibly popular in markets such as India. It has been among the top six most downloaded apps from Google Play in India for the last two years, venture capitalist Mary Meeker noted in her yearly internet report in May this year. As of July, UC Browser had been installed more than 100 million times worldwide from Google Play Store.

34 comments

  1. Spyware allegations? by Clueless+Nick · · Score: 1

    Didn't someone allege a while back that this browser was spying on its users? More than most other browsers, I mean.

    --
    Chat with other atheists http://secularchat.org
    1. Re:Spyware allegations? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Is the acceptable level of spying always equal to google spying level? What about possible backdoors in google products, are backdoors acceptable for anyone or does google have double standard where it can have them but others can not.

    2. Re:Spyware allegations? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      google is FAR BEYOND acceptable.

    3. Re:Spyware allegations? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I didn't know that UC Browser is a Google product. Thanks for letting everyone know.

    4. Re: Spyware allegations? by emil · · Score: 1

      Google has removed and returned apps from the play store in the past with no explanation. We would like to think they did this for the safety of their user community, but there could be many other reasons.

      https://forum.xda-developers.com/xposed/ifontexpert-fonts-harmful-app-removed-t3386443

      U.C. Browser was just WebKit, and not technically interesting. Firefox Focus is a far better option.

    5. Re: Spyware allegations? by rmdingler · · Score: 1

      Google has removed and returned apps from the play store in the past with no explanation. We would like to think they did this for the safety of their user community, but there could be many other reasons.

      It was probably Google looking out the user community, but it'd be prudent not to rule out the minuscule chance it is a leverage maneuver to get its own browser back into mainland China.

      --
      Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.

      Ernest Hemingway

    6. Re: Spyware allegations? by jpluis · · Score: 2

      Pity! It is (was) the only browser I know that performs text-reflow after pinch-to-zoom. (The only other browser that did something similar was the old & retired Android 4 ICS browser) ... and I am never in the mood to put on my glasses to read news sites. Oh well...

    7. Re:Spyware allegations? by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      The question is what information are they taking.
      Google may pull my location to give me search results that are local. Other browsers may be just tracking the MAC of my device and based on my viewing habits it will determine if I am a valued citizen or not.

      So it isn’t what they are collecting but how they are using it. I am not giving google a free pass. One click on something political divisive has me flagged as hey take a look at all this content based on the political belief each more insane then the previous.

      Currently google thinks I have a strong anti-Mormon stance because I saw a kinda funny video making fun of Mormons. Previously I got flooded with options about anti-feminists stances. Because I watch someone’s commentary which I found lacking explaining how boy students were being left behind academically.

      Such trends do worry me, just because I have a passing interest in a topic to have me flagged as someone with sting believe in that area is worrisome.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    8. Re:Spyware allegations? by ArmoredDragon · · Score: 1

      You can opt out of it on chrome, just untick all of the privacy checkboxes in the advanced settings.

  2. Good riddance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Its caching was out of control and its ad-blocking wasnt as good as an extension. There wasnt an option to turn off JavaScript and it could only hold 20 tabs.

    1. Re:Good riddance by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wtf why would you want more than 20 tabs on a phone/tablet/tv stick

    2. Re:Good riddance by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 1

      _Your_ use case isn't the same as everyone else's.

      I can gave 3 reasons:

      * Because I read _multiple_ topics.

      * I keep tabs open for months at a time where I can come back and resume where I left off.

      * I usually have between 50 - 100 tabs open on my iPhone & iPad Pro because its faster then navigating a shitty bookmark / menu system having to drill down multiple levels of the hierarchy.

    3. Re:Good riddance by sheramil · · Score: 1

      does your browser of choice not have bookmarks? they're a neat feature. you should check it out.

  3. Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Gee, it's kind of hard to justify this when you're constantly trying to push your own browser down SWITCH TO CHROME A BETTER BROWSER. GOOGLE RECOMMENDS USING CHROME [I WANT IT] [GOOGLE, YOU COMPLETE ME] everyone's throats.

    If my memory serves me correctly this company called Micro-Soft or something was in dutch for pulling shenanigans like this, and paid a hefty fine.

    1. Re:Monopoly? by war4peace · · Score: 1

      If my memory serves me correctly this company called Micro-Soft or something was in dutch for pulling shenanigans like this, and paid a hefty fine.

      I guess the Dutch didn't like it...

      --
      ...gis sdrawkcab (usually not responding to ACs; don't bother posting as AC)
    2. Re:Monopoly? by Dutch+Gun · · Score: 1

      I guess the Dutch didn't like it...

      Damn straight.

      --
      Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.
    3. Re:Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's OK to be straight.

    4. Re:Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Is it?

    5. Re:Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why do you ask?

    6. Re:Monopoly? by tepples · · Score: 1

      Without a straight majority, the species dies.

    7. Re:Monopoly? by war4peace · · Score: 1

      Don't we humans have a crooked majority?

      --
      ...gis sdrawkcab (usually not responding to ACs; don't bother posting as AC)
    8. Re:Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not true. I know lots of queers who have families. I can assure you, lots of "straight" people aren't. But really, gay sex is a *dog humping the leg* thing. It just feels good.

    9. Re:Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Insects, etc, would disagree.

    10. Re:Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You don't have to be straight to procreate.

    11. Re:Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Guys? You're distracted. Between Dutch Gun damning straight and you explaiming that being gay is not the end of the species, it's still OK to be straight!

    12. Re:Monopoly? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Insects have far larger litters than humans. Duggar fecundity is about as high as it gets: about 18 kids per birthmother over her reproductive career.

  4. Should be an easy check by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The next version of Google Maps will display a pin at every GPS location your browser has spied on you in the last 6 months, for your safety of course.

    1. Re:Should be an easy check by GuB-42 · · Score: 1

      It would make Google Maps unusable. We wouldn't be able to see the map behind the pins.

  5. Sweet! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Does that mean facebook messenger will come off soon?

  6. beAware the Idles of NoVember by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    becaUse it toLls for yEe!

  7. Anti-competitive practice makes perfect. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Anti-competitive practice makes anti-competitive perfect.

  8. Re:Indian App by viperidaenz · · Score: 1

    Alibaba is Chinese, not Indian