Google Play was launched on March 6, 2012, bringing together Android Market, Google Music, and the Google eBookstore under one brand, marking a shift in Google's digital distribution strategy. It has been the subject of multiple issues concerning security, in which malicious software has been approved and uploaded to the store and downloaded by users, with varying degrees of severity. The Google Play store had over 82 billion app downloads in 2016 and has reached over 3.5 million apps published in 2017. Applications utilizing hardware capabilities of a device can be targeted to users of devices with specific hardware components, such as a motion sensor (for motion-dependent games) or a front-facing camera (for online video calling).

They can be downloaded directly on an Android device through the proprietary Play Store mobile app or by deploying the application to a device from the Google Play website.

It previously offered Google hardware devices for purchase until the introduction of a separate online hardware retailer, Google Store, on March 11, 2015, and it also offered news publications and magazines before the revamp of Google News on May 15, 2018.Īpplications are available through Google Play either free of charge or at a cost. Google Play also serves as a digital media store, offering music, books, movies, and television programs. It serves as the official app store for devices running on 'Google certified' Android operating system, allowing users to browse and download applications developed with the Android software development kit (SDK) and published through Google. Google Play, formerly Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google.

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