jbzFeb 20

Google announced that as of September 2026, it will no longer be possible to develop apps for the Android platform without first registering centrally with Google. This registration will involve:

- Paying a fee to Google
- Agreeing to Google’s Terms and Conditions
- Providing government identification
- Uploading evidence of the developer’s private signing key
- Listing all current and future application identifiers

https://keepandroidopen.org/

#android #opensource #keepandroidopen

Keep Android Open

Advocating for Android as a free, open platform for everyone to build apps on.

Show threadMichel Patrice

@jbz

Getting a monopoly to be less shitty is nice, but wouldn't building an alternative be much better?

There is already the french /e/ OS that exists. I wish european countries would start building on it and improving it. Thereby breaking the shitty monopoly.

Europe seems to have suddenly awaken and started actively looking for alternatives to american big tech.

And a Google free phone would be a thing.

@gael #monopoly #GAFAM #Google #Android

Feb 22 at 12:42amWeb
Show threadAnttiFeb 23
@MichelPatrice @jbz @gael There is already true European alternative, #SailfishOS. Unfortunately /e/OS isn't true alternative as it is just android fork. It can mitigate the Google data mining and offer short term user privacy but won't bring European tech independence. Supporting #Jolla can lead to much brighter future IMO as phones with Sailfish are already google free phones.
Show threadGaël Duval - /e/OS & MurenaFeb 23
@Antti98 @MichelPatrice @jbz "it is just android fork" 🙄
100% open source, and yes based on Linux kernel etc. This is really a small consideration of what /e/OS and all the features we are adding.
Show threadAnttiFeb 23
@gael @MichelPatrice @jbz I don't meant to downplay your work! It is great way in short term to mitigate the Google data mining as I said. Great work in that front! And maybe easier for people to transfer. But isn't truth that it is fork of android and relies completely on AOSP? Which is fully controlled by Google and works as long as Google allows? Surely technically based on Linux kernel, but not really a linux distro, right?
Show threadricharddebruinFeb 23
@gael @Antti98 @MichelPatrice @jbz but still based on ASOP/Lineage --> Android --> Google. If Google decides to close it more and more? Sure you are adding features, but see what Google is doing with Android (developer verification) and where does this ends?
Show threadDávid BárdosFeb 23
@Antti98 @MichelPatrice @jbz @gael I'm on /e/os now with my fairphone 5, but I tried #sailfishos and I loved it. I would happily pay for the android compatibility layer to get it work on my phone, but I've just bought my device before they announced their new phone, so won't like buy another one. 😅
Show threadAnttiFeb 23
@david_bardos @MichelPatrice @jbz @gael Hopefully Jolla one day sells AAS to community ports! But definitely understandable and good that you will use your phone as long feasible. Environment thanks :)
Show threadMichel PatriceFeb 23

@Antti98 @jbz @gael

Android is based on Linux and was a free and open source software. It has been highjacked.

Being free open source, it belongs to humanity. It can be european if europeans work on it. It can be japanese if Japan works on it.

Is /e/ completely freed from Google dependency? Probably not, but it is definetely something to work on.

(This is a non-tech person’s somment.)

Show threadGaël Duval - /e/OS & MurenaFeb 23
@MichelPatrice @Antti98 @jbz that is exactly how a strategy can work and end up into a hard and fully independent fork. If you look at it closely you will notice that it is on its way.
Show threadAnttiFeb 23
@gael @MichelPatrice @jbz If Murena is able to make e/OS completely independent from android, I salute you! Then you would be truly own operating system, which would be great :) But if it requires native apps outside of "standard" android I think there could be challenges in the ecosystem. On other hand if there isn't native app builds, then reliance with Google stays on. But time will tell, I definitely will keep my eyes open with /e/OS development
Show threadMichel PatriceFeb 23

@gael

J’ai acheté un cellulaire seconde main* fonctionnant avec /e/ pour en faire l’essai. Et c’est franchement très bien.

Parce que toute la procédure d’installation était franchement intimidante et le risque de transformer mon cellulaire en brique ne m’excitait pas. C’est sans doute un des grands obstacle à une adoption plus généralisée de la patente.

(* D’un fournisseur anglais pour ne pas acheter aux États-Unis. Ici, on est pas mal à être franchement remontés contre les É.-U...)

Show threadAnttiFeb 23
@MichelPatrice @jbz @gael If I have understood this right, Android is based on Linux kernel yes, but on top of that is so much Google's stuff that it is very far from being linux distro as we understand it in PC word. And even if Google has keeped AOSP open, I have always thinked it as product of Google as they have full control with it. It wasn't open source development like Linux for example IMO. Always good to have options without Google data mining
Show threadMichel PatriceFeb 23

@Antti98

I had never heard of Jolla and SailfishOS. Thank you. I will look it up.