14 DAY TRIAL // Google is rolling out a series of tweaks for the Play Store search feature to focus on app quality, thus trying to help users discover apps that do not affect device performance in any way.
In an announcement today, Google says that it’s specifically targeting apps causing excessive battery usage, slow render times, and crashes, explaining that these can become “a source of frustration,” so users should avoid them. This is why the new search and discovery algorithms put the focus on quality, with apps experiencing performance issues to be harder to find.
“We recently enhanced our search and discovery algorithms to reflect app quality. This results in higher quality apps being surfaced in the Play store more than similar apps of lower quality (eg: apps that exhibit more frequent crashes). The change has had a positive impact on engagement -- we've seen that people go on to use higher quality apps more and uninstall them less,” Andrew Ahn, Product Manager, Google Play, explains.
Devs having no other option than to update apps
With this move, Google shoots two birds with one stone. First of all, it reduces the chances of users coming across apps that affect device performance by putting the focus entirely on high-quality apps in the search feature. And then, it forces developers to optimize their apps in order to remain relevant in the Google Play Store and increase chances of users downloading apps.
Google provides a series of tools to help developer optimize their apps, including Android vitals which displays performance issues discovered on devices that have already install the app. Furthermore, Google recommends app makers to keep an eye on ratings and reviews, as users who experience problems with their apps often turn to the Play Store to complain about a specific feature or bug and get in touch with the developer.
The new algorithm is already in place right now for Android users, so search results in the Play Store should no longer display those apps that are known for causing crashes and other performance issues on devices.