Does this effect App Update, Refresh prompt for BuzzTouch? "Android developers now banned from bypassing Google’s Play Store app updates" http://bgr.com/2013/04/26/android-app-updates-google-play-467291/

Apparently not: https://www.buzztouch.com/forum/thread.php?tid=AB9494236537724C5DCC840&currentPage=2

I'm going to guess not. BT is really about dynamic content, and there are TONS of apps out there that update their content on a daily basis. I can't see them cracking down on the way BT allows updates. That being said, if you ARE making major changes to your app (like adding new screens and functionality), doing a store update actually shows to your customers that you're continuing to improve the app. They might not notice that if all your updates are being pushed out via the control panel. Just something to think about. Mark

The article clearly states that: “an app downloaded from Google Play may not modify, replace or update its own APK binary code using any method other than Google Play’s update mechanism.” This is not what Buzztouch is doing at all. Even major changes to the app via the control panel do not fit this criteria (although it *might* constitute a violation according to Apple's ToS). Buzztouch is just sending a plain text file to the app over the Internet, and the code is preconfigured to read that text file and display content accordingly. Many many apps do the same thing - Buzztouch just does it a bit more than most. The change was apparently in response to one particular app - Facebook of all things - that was intentionally circumventing the update process for core binary changes. It's not about content - Google doesn't review its apps for content anyway - it's about security and privacy. Anytime you install an app from Google Play, you are presented with the list of security exceptions that are agreed upon (i.e., accessing the SDCard, accessing the Contacts, etc). By pushing a core binary update through outside the Google Play market, it's possible that users would be opening themselves up to security holes without knowing it. It should also be noted that Facebook was requiring users to make a change in the security settings of the Android device to allow installation of apps from 3rd party sources to make this possible. Many people turn that off to install apps from Amazon's store, but to force users to turn that security setting off just to install your app from Google Play is concerning. Google is just trying to prevent that.

Good explanations! Thanks. -Shane

Excellent explanation, Chris!

Yup...Chris has this perfect. I commented along the same lines here: https://www.buzztouch.com/forum/thread.php?tid=AB9494236537724C5DCC840&currentPage=2