Aptoide becomes the first rival app store to return to Google Play in the US
Aptoide becomes the first rival app store to return to Google Play in the US
Aptoide 成为首个重返美国 Google Play 的竞争对手应用商店
Competing Android app stores are now back on Google Play in the U.S., and Aptoide is the first to take advantage of the new option. On Monday, the Portugal-based app distributor brought its games store back to Google Play after more than a decade, crediting the loosening of restrictions that had been criticized as anticompetitive. 竞争性 Android 应用商店现已重返美国 Google Play，而 Aptoide 是首个利用这一新选项的平台。周一，这家总部位于葡萄牙的应用分发商在时隔十多年后将其游戏商店重新上架 Google Play，并将此归功于此前被批评为反竞争的限制措施有所放宽。
For the first time in many years, U.S. users will be able to install a competitor to Google’s Android app store directly from Google Play itself, a milestone in terms of opening the app market to more competition. Aptoide’s independent app store is one of the larger Android app marketplaces outside of Google Play, offering more than 40,000 Android applications to its roughly 25 million monthly active users. The U.S. has been Aptoide’s largest market to date, but until now, the store had to be sideloaded on Android devices, limiting its reach. 多年来，美国用户首次能够直接从 Google Play 安装 Google Android 应用商店的竞争对手，这是应用市场向更多竞争开放的一个里程碑。Aptoide 的独立应用商店是 Google Play 之外较大的 Android 应用市场之一，为约 2500 万月活跃用户提供超过 4 万款 Android 应用程序。美国一直是 Aptoide 迄今为止最大的市场，但在此之前，该商店必须通过侧载（sideloading）方式安装在 Android 设备上，这限制了其覆盖范围。
That changed following U.S. District Judge James Donato’s ruling in the Epic Games lawsuit, which, among other things, now requires Google to allow the installation of third-party apps from outside the Play Store. As of June 22, 2026, Google began allowing third-party app stores to access Google Play’s app catalog through the Play Catalog Access Program. This allows competitors to access Google Play infrastructure, including its catalog of apps that can be offered to users, while remaining an independent store. 随着美国地方法官 James Donato 在 Epic Games 诉讼案中的裁决，这种情况发生了改变。该裁决除其他事项外，现在要求 Google 允许安装 Play 商店之外的第三方应用。自 2026 年 6 月 22 日起，Google 开始允许第三方应用商店通过“Play 目录访问计划”（Play Catalog Access Program）访问 Google Play 的应用目录。这使得竞争对手在保持独立商店地位的同时，能够访问 Google Play 的基础设施，包括可提供给用户的应用目录。
Epic Games first sued Google in 2020, alleging anticompetitive abuses in the Android app ecosystem. A jury trial ruled in Epic’s favor in 2023. Google appealed the ruling, but lost. Earlier this year, the company said it would drop Play Store commissions and make it easier for Android users to install alternative app stores. Epic Games 于 2020 年首次起诉 Google，指控其在 Android 应用生态系统中存在反竞争滥用行为。2023 年，陪审团裁定 Epic 胜诉。Google 对该裁决提出上诉，但最终败诉。今年早些时候，该公司表示将取消 Play 商店的佣金，并让 Android 用户更容易安装替代应用商店。