And here's the Fediverse post about the incident if you don't want to click on a twitter link <a href="https://fosstodon.org/@organicmaps/112976308191001762" rel="nofollow">https://fosstodon.org/@organicmaps/112976308191001762</a>
That's why AppStore monopolize are such a chore. There is no independent judicial authority if something between Google and a App Provider goes wrong. Google playing legeslative, executive and judiciary in one entity.<p>There is a reason most people in democratic countries don't like it, if there country has all the powers in one hand. At the same time it seams to be accepted for cooperation, as long as there are big enough.
Just used it yesterday. It's a great little app to browse OSM data as it is. Much better than Google Maps at finding walkable trails. If only it had the features of overpass turbo, e.g. searching for points tagged with specific attributes.
For companies like google, I feel like the opposite of Hanlon's razor applies, which makes:<p>Never attribute to stupidity that which is adequately explained by malice.
The killer feature of Organic Maps is that you can download the maps for the entire world (yay OSM!) and not have to depend on signal or having a data plan.<p>Super important for intentional travel or nature (National parks often have no signal).<p>It's blazing fast — far snappier than other map apps I've used. And OSM data is better than Google's for hiking and biking.<p>The POI database isn't as detailed, and you wouldn't use it to find an espresso shop near you (...yet). But it's much better as a map app.
Organic Maps is nice. On my phone (GrapheneOS Android), I use Organic Maps exclusively now, and haven't yet seen a need to install or use Google Maps on the phone.<p>(I still use the Google Maps Web site on my laptop, though, and like StreetView, satellite, and the texture-mapped aerial 3D imagery there.)
Google keeps removing "unused" developer accounts and "low quality" apps, but if I want to remove my apps from Play Store and close developer account, but it is impossible to remove apps when developer actually wants to do it, only "hide" them. And there's no button to delete developer account either. Double standards.
Install it from F-Droid and live free of this monopolistic bullshit<p><a href="https://f-droid.org" rel="nofollow">https://f-droid.org</a>
You can still download via APK hosted on their website, no (like the FTA says, and provides a link)?<p>Isn’t that want folks want - to not have to go through the gatekeeper, aka Play Store?
Seems nobody else here was speculating on a rules-based cause, so I might as well.<p>Policy 1 [0] seems the most likely cause to me. I wouldn't be surprised if there was some vandalism on OSM that had some "inappropriate" content or similar.<p>0: <a href="https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/9893335" rel="nofollow">https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answ...</a>
I use organic maps.<p>great app!<p>I use it on E/os and lineage phones.<p>My friends have it on their googled phones, not from the play store.<p>I get them to install Droid-ify and install it from there.<p>Then I adb remove google maps completely for them.
Google acting like a monopolist.<p>Would they <i>ever</i> apply the same scrutiny towards their own apps? Can you imagine Google maps being taken off the play store without being given a reason?<p>I filed a support issue in the play store complaining about being unable to install the app.<p>But quite frankly this should be a case for antitrust.
As a temporary workaround for the Google Play issue, you can install the new upcoming Google Play update from this link: <a href="https://cdn.organicmaps.app/apk/OrganicMaps-24081605-GooglePlay.apk" rel="nofollow">https://cdn.organicmaps.app/apk/OrganicMaps-24081605-GoogleP...</a>
Organic Maps is awesome. Just used it to get through the Tour du Mont Blanc (170km/105mi hike around the Mont Blanc massif). The app is not perfect, but it's constantly improving thanks to its community of devs. Def try it out!
Just use fdroid. It's a nice app, great for hiking. Last time I used it (2 years ago), it seemed to be quite a battery drain, not sure they fixed it in the meantime.
Oh it's just another multi-trillion dollar company operating with near unlimited discretion in the domain in which it's a (mono|duo)polist. What else is new? Anything else than turbo-capitalism is so out of fashion these days, even things like "utilities" regulation as applied to e.g. phone companies in the 20th century is now decidedly out of scope. We will continue to have these hugely profitable companies bully competitors and extend their tentacles everywhere until states do something about it.<p>--<p>The unspecified "you have violated our terms of service ergo your account has been closed / your data has been deleted / you can't open this page or this app, no appeal or review allowed" is a pretty insidious example of this prepotence.
Why does Google communicate like this? Anyone reviewing OraganicMaps will instantly judge it not to be some scam or malicious app. So why the completely useless message? Nowhere do they actually say <i>what</i> OrganicMaps is doing wrong.<p>I'm sure the answer is 'automated review process, humans are expensive', but it's really fucked up to see a huge corporation like Google just removing one of the two most well-known OpenStreetMap apps like that (the other being OsmAnd).<p>If you use Android: get free software apps like these from F-Droid.
It could the part of their effort on purging of low quality apps[1], announced last month.<p>[1]<a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41018292">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41018292</a>