http://keepandroidopen.org/ Keep Android Open In August 2025, Google announced that starting next year, it will no longer be possible to develop apps for the Android platform without first registering centrally with Google. This registration will involve: [money_bag] Paying a fee to Google [contract_e] Agreeing to Google's Terms and Conditions [id_card] Providing government identification [fingerprin] Uploading evidence of the developer's private signing key [receipt] Listing all current and future application identifiers What this means for your rights You, the consumer, purchased your Android device believing in Google's promise that it was an open computing platform and that you could run whatever software you choose on it. Instead, starting next year, they will be non-consensually pushing an update to your operating system that irrevocably blocks this right and leaves you at the mercy of their judgement over what software you are permitted to trust. You, the creator, can no longer develop an app and share it directly with your friends, family, and community without first seeking Google's approval. The promise of Android -- and a marketing advantage it has used to distinguish itself against the iPhone -- has always been that it is "open". But Google clearly feels that they have enough of a lock on the Android ecosystem, along with sufficient regulatory capture, that they can now jettison this principle with prejudice and impunity. You, the state, are ceding the rights of your citizens and your own digital sovereignty to a company with a track record of complying with the extrajudicial demands of authoritarian regimes to remove perfectly legal apps that they happen to dislike. The software that is critical to the running of your businesses and governments will be at the mercy of the opaque whims of a distant and unaccountable corporation. How you can help Contact national regulators When contacting regulators directly, you should be polite and specific about the harm you believe these policies will cause, both to consumers and to competition. Complaints are especially impactful when they are authored by a citizen of that country or region, and when the language of the email is written in one of the official languages of the region's governing body. European Union * Email: COMP-GREFFE-ANTITRUST@ec.europa.eu * Complain to the EU Competition Policy United States * Email: antitrust@ftc.gov * Email: antitrust.complaints@usdoj.gov * Make a report to to US Department of Justice Antitrust Report Online and US Federal Trade Commission: Antitrust Complaint United Kingdom * Email: general.enquiries@cma.gov.uk * Make a report to the UK Competition & Markets Authority Brazil * Email: superintendencia@cade.gov.br * Reach out to Brazil's Procon and Senacon * Note: Brazil is slated to be one of the initial 4 countries where developer registration will be enforced Singapore * Email: cccs_feedback@cccs.gov.sg * Contact the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) * Note: Singapore is slated to be one of the initial 4 countries where developer registration will be enforced Thailand * Email: info@otcc.or.th * Contact the Office of Trade Competition Commission (OTCC) * Note: Thailand is slated to be one of the initial 4 countries where developer registration will be enforced Indonesia * Email: infokom@kppu.go.id * Contact the KPPU for Competition Complaints * Note: Indonesia is slated to be one of the initial 4 countries where developer registration will be enforced Brazil * Email: superintendencia@cade.gov.br * Reach out to Procon (depends on your state) and Senacon * Note: Brazil is slated to be one of the initial 4 countries where developer registration will be enforced Australia * Email: info@accc.gov.au * File a report with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) * Send a request to Australian Australian Consumers' Association ( CHOICE). Ask them to lodge a designated complaint to the Australian Competition & Consumer Comission (ACCC). Japan * Email: intnldiv@jftc.go.jp * Contact the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) South Korea * Email: kftc@korea.kr * Contact the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) India * Email: cci-chairman@nic.in * Contact the Competition Commission of India (CCI) Canada * Email: info@competitionbureau.gc.ca * File a report with the https://competition-bureau.canada.ca/en Taiwan * Email: ftc@ftc.gov.tw * Contact the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) Turkey * Contact the Rekabet Kurumu / Turkish Competition Authority (RK) Argentina * Email: cndc@produccion.gob.ar * Contact the Comision Nacional de Defensa de la Competencia (CNDC) Mexico * Email: contacto@cofece.mx * Contact the Comision Federal de Competencia Economica (COFECE) Sign the Open Letter * Add your organization's signature to the draft Open Letter to Google Regarding Mandatory Developer Registration for Third-Party App Distribution by emailing signatories@keepandroidopen.org with your name, title, and affiliation. Other * Provide feedback directly to Google using their Android developer verification requirements survey. * Make your voice heard on social media and with blog posts. * Help this project out by editing this page with more useful information. References Overview * https://consumerrights.wiki/w/Android_Developer_Verification Editorials and Blogs * "What We Talk About When We Talk About Sideloading" -- https:// f-droid.org/en/2025/10/28/sideloading.html (Hacker News Thread) * "F-Droid and Google's Developer Registration Decree" -- https:// f-droid.org/en/2025/09/29/ google-developer-registration-decree.html (Hacker News Thread) * "Pluralistic: Darth Android" -- https://pluralistic.net/2025/09/01 /fulu/ * "Google plans to block side-loading like Apple, declaring war on Android freedom" -- https://tuta.com/blog/ android-side-load-apps-google Press Reactions * "Google kneecaps indie Android devs, forces them to register" -- https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/26/ android_developer_verification_sideloading/ * "Open-Source Android Apps at Risk Under Google's New Decree" -- https://www.techrepublic.com/article/ news-f-droid-warns-google-developer-decree-open-source-android/ * "Google's New Developer ID Rule Could Harm F-Droid, Says Open-Source Advocate" -- https://reclaimthenet.org/ googles-android-id-rule-threatens-f-droids-future * "Google's developer registration 'decree' means the end for alternative app stores" -- https://cybernews.com/tech/ googles-developer-registration-decree-end-alternative-app-stores/ * "Open-Source Android Apps Threatened by Google's New Policy" -- https://www.datamation.com/open-source/android-apps-google-policy / * "Google's new ID requirements could destroy independent app stores" -- https://www.techspot.com/news/ 109728-google-confirms-new-android-rules-significantly-restrict-app.html * "Google's Requirement For All Android Developers To Register And Be Verified Threatens To Close Down Open Source App Store F-Droid" -- https://www.techdirt.com/2025/10/07/ googles-requirement-for-all-android-developers-to-register-and-be-verified-threatens-to-close-down-open-source-app-store-f-droid / * "Google's new developer rules could threaten sideloading and F-Droid's future" -- https://www.gizmochina.com/2025/09/30/ googles-new-developer-rules-could-threaten-sideloading-and-f-droids-future / * "Google is restricting one of Android's most important features, and users are outraged" -- https://www.slashgear.com/1962802/ google-restricting-important-android-feature-reason-why-users-outraged / * "Android's sideloading limits are its most anti-consumer move yet" - https://www.makeuseof.com/ androids-sideloading-limits-are-anti-consumer-move-yet/ * "Google's dev registration plan 'will end the F-Droid project'" -- https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/29/ googles_dev_registration_plan_will/ * "F-Droid says Google's new sideloading restrictions will kill the project" -- https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/09/ f-droid-calls-for-regulators-to-stop-googles-crackdown-on-sideloading / * "Google will require developer verification for Android apps outside the Play Store" -- https://techcrunch.com/2025/08/25/ google-will-require-developer-verification-for-android-apps-outside-the-play-store / * "Google will verify Android developers distributing apps outside the Play store" -- https://www.theverge.com/news/765881/ google-android-apps-side-loading-developer-verification * "Google will require developer verification to install Android apps, including sideloading" -- https://9to5google.com/2025/08/25/ android-apps-developer-verification/ * "Android Security or Vendor Lock-In? Google's New Sideloading Rules Smell Fishy" -- https://news.itsfoss.com/ new-android-sideloading-rules/ * "Google Demands Dev Identity For All Android Apps" - https:// www.i-programmer.info/news/193-android/ 18276-google-demands-dev-identity-for-all-android-apps.html * "Google Defends Developer Verification" - https:// www.i-programmer.info/news/193-android/ 18356-google-defends-developer-verification.html Video Responses * "Google: 'Your $1000 phone needs our permission to install apps now'" -- Louis Rossmann -- https://youtu.be/QBEKlIV_70E * "F-Droid Will Die in 2026 Unless We Act Now -- Techlore" -- https:/ /youtu.be/wRvqdLsnsKY * "Google is Removing Sideloading" -- LMG Clips -- https://youtu.be/ -R76VJtTDJ8 * "Google's changes to sideloading could end F-Droid - Linux Weekly News" -- https://youtu.be/iMqpm2Ahmt0 * "Is F-Droid in Trouble? Google Developer Verification" -- https:// youtu.be/-SOOoQWv4kk * "Google is Applefying Android: The End of Openness" -- ChiefGyk3D -- https://youtu.be/WFOPzixHoLY Discussions * https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45742488 * https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45409794 * https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45507173 * https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45569371 * https://lobste.rs/s/x1sdu5/ f_droid_google_s_developer_registration * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1n1m699/ horrible_news/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1n3jtrf/ google_you_royally_screwed_up/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1n0uy6g/ just_received_this_email_now_you_can_get/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1n2im4j/ this_may_mark_the_end_of_android_development_for/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1n0f41c/ google_will_require_developer_verification_to/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1km8jof/ google_play_developer_verification/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1mzw877/ android_developers_blog_a_new_layer_of_security/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1n7g0cc/ to_all_android_devs_speak_up_now_before_you_lose/ * https://www.reddit.com/r/androiddev/comments/1oaj908/ collection_of_actions_we_can_take_to_stop/ Official Documentation * Initial announcement -- https://android-developers.googleblog.com/ 2025/08/elevating-android-security.html * Android developer verification: Guides -- https:// developer.android.com/developer-verification/guides/ android-developer-console#complete-identity * Android developer verification: Frequently asked questions -- https://developer.android.com/developer-verification/guides/faq * Introducing the Android Developer Console: A first look -- https:/ /developer.android.com/developer-verification/assets/pdfs/ introducing-the-android-developer-console.pdf * Download an early look of the new Android Developer Console -- https://support.google.com/android-developer-console/answer/ 16450960 * API Documentation -- https://developer.android.com/reference/ android/content/pm/PackageInstaller# DEVELOPER_VERIFICATION_FAILED_REASON_DEVELOPER_BLOCKED Miscellaneous * Opposition recommendations Contact * Email: info@keepandroidopen.org * Report Site Issues Privacy Statement: This site uses no cookies and performs no user tracking or logging. 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