Posted by Jolanda Verhoef, Android Developer Relations Engineer
Starting today, the various Jetpack Compose libraries will move to independent versioning schemes. This creates the possibility for sub-groups such as androidx.compose.compiler or androidx.compose.animation to follow their own release cycles. Allowing these libraries to be versioned independently will decouple dependencies which were previously implicitly coupled, thereby making it easier to incrementally upgrade your application and therefore stay up-to-date with the latest Compose features. The first library to break away from the single Compose version is the Compose Compiler. Today we’re releasing the 1.2.0 stable version that brings support for Kotlin 1.7.0! The release is both backwards and forwards compatible with the Compose UI libraries and the Compose Runtime library. This means you can upgrade your Compose Compiler to 1.2.0 stable and use Kotlin 1.7.0, while leaving your other Compose libraries on their current version, for example 1.1.0 stable. To upgrade the version of the Compose Compiler in your app, specify the kotlinCompilerExtensionVersion in your build.gradle file.
android { composeOptions { kotlinCompilerExtensionVersion = "1.2.0" } }
Compose and Kotlin are highly coupled, and we’ve heard your feedback that Compose compiler updates are needed to allow you to upgrade your Kotlin version. We want to make sure that you can use the latest and greatest features (and bug fixes) from both Compose and Kotlin, which is why we plan to release stable versions of the Compose Compiler on a much more regular basis. This means the Compose Compiler version numbers will progress at a faster pace than most other Compose libraries. Since the Compose Compiler is both forwards and backwards compatible, you will be able to upgrade it as soon as a new version is released. The Compose Compiler is built as a Kotlin Compiler Plugin, and so you must use a version of the Compose Compiler which is compatible with the version of Kotlin that you have chosen. To help you choose the version that matches your project, check out the Compose-Kotlin compatibility map. Moving the Compiler library to a different versioning scheme is the first step in decoupling versioning for the different Compose library groups. You’ll see new stable releases for the other Compose libraries in the next few weeks, and then they will then start following their own release cycles independent of the Compose Compiler. Prepare your build for individual versioning and start using the latest Compose Compiler and Kotlin versions now! We look forward to seeing what you build with Compose!
Posted by Sachiyo Sugimoto, Android Partner Engineering
A strength of Android is its diverse ecosystem of devices, brought to market by more than 24K distinct devices, and used by billions of people around the world. Since the early releases of Android, we’ve invested in our Android Compatibility Program as a way to ensure that devices continue to provide a stable, consistent environment for apps.
The Compatibility Test Suite (CTS) is a key part of the program - it is a collection of more than two million test cases that check Android device implementations to ensure developer applications run on a variety of devices and enable a consistent application experience for users.Device makers run CTS on their devices throughout the development process, and use it to identify and fix bugs early. Over the years we have constantly expanded the suite by adding new test cases, and today CTS includes more than 2 million tests. It is still growing - as Android evolves, there are new areas to cover and there are also gaps where we are constantly working to create additional tests. While most CTS tests are written by Android engineers, we know that app developers have a unique perspective on actual device compatibility issues. So to enhance CTS with better input from app developers, we are adding a new test suite called CTS-D that is built and run by developers like you.
Posted by Patricia Correa, Director, Global Developer Marketing
Over 2.5 billion people come to Google Play every month to find apps and games created by millions of businesses from all over the world.
#WeArePlay celebrates you: the global community of people behind these businesses.
Each one of you creating an app or game has a different story to tell. Some of you have been coders since childhood, others are newbies who got into tech later in life. Some of you are based in busy cities, others in smaller towns. No matter who you are or how different your story is, you all have one thing in common - you have the passion to turn an idea into a business impacting people all over the world.
Now, and over the coming months, #WeArePlay celebrates you by sharing your stories.
To all apps and games businesses - thank you for being a part of the Google Play community. Your dedication and ambition is helping millions of people learn, connect, relax, exercise, find jobs, give back, laugh, have fun, escape to fantasy lands, and so much more.
Read more and stay tuned for many more stories at g.co/play/weareplay
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Posted by Fred Chung, Android Developer Relations
The Privacy Sandbox on Android aims to develop new solutions that preserve user privacy and enable effective, personalized advertising experiences for apps. Since our first developer preview, we've shared progress updates and continue to engage the industry on everything from the Developer Preview timeline, to Topics taxonomy, to SDK version management. We appreciate your feedback!
Today, we’re releasing Developer Preview 3, which includes APIs and developer resources for conversion measurement and remarketing use cases. In addition to the preview of SDK Runtime and Topics APIs released earlier, you can for the first time begin testing and evaluating impact on all key APIs for Privacy Sandbox on Android.
These APIs allow developers to measure when an ad click or view event leads to a conversion, such as the download of a new game. They support key use cases for attribution across apps and the web, and improve user privacy by removing reliance on cross-party user identifiers.
This release includes a developer guide and sample apps to help you understand client- and server-side set up and interactions for key parts of the attribution reporting workflow, including:
To help facilitate testing, the release also supports ADB commands to override reporting time windows. Refer to the API reference to learn more about the Android client APIs.
Part of FLEDGE for Android, these APIs provide the building blocks to serve customized ads to users based on previous app engagement, without third-party data sharing. You’ll be able to:
To learn more, refer to the Custom Audience and Ad Selection API reference pages, as well as the release notes.
If you’re just starting to explore the Developer Preview, please also review the supported features described in the SDK Runtime and Topics API developer guides.
If you need a refresher on key technologies for the Privacy Sandbox on Android, we recommend watching this overview video and reviewing the design proposals.
Today’s Developer Preview release provides the resources you need to begin early testing of features and share feedback. To get started developing, see instructions to set up the SDK and system images on the emulator or supported Pixel devices.
For more information on the Privacy Sandbox on Android Developer Preview, visit the developer site and sign up for our newsletter to receive regular updates.
Posted by Tom Grinsted - Group Product Manager, Google Play
Here at Google Play, we’re always working on new ways to help developers grow their businesses, whether that’s by increasing installs, improving engagement, or boosting monetization. So in case you missed it, here are the top 3 new ways to grow your business that we announced at this year’s Google I/O:
Custom store listings have gotten a major update, giving you new ways to make a great first impression by showing the right message to each person.
You can now generate unique deep links to your custom listings, so you can show different listings to users depending on which channel or site they come from. And because Play Console provides analytics for each of your custom listings, you can see how effective each variation is and optimize them over time.
All developers can create up to 50 custom store listings, so you can create more tailored narratives for your users than ever before. With up to 5 experiments per listing, the opportunities for optimization are huge!
Custom store listings have gotten a major update, giving you new ways to improve your conversion rate.
LiveOps are self-service merchandising units in the Play Store that promote limited-time events, offers, and major updates for your game or app. Developers in our beta can submit content to help inspire installs, increase engagement, and drive sales.
Plus, they can now use deep links to drop users directly into the most relevant part of their app or game, then measure success with the new LiveOps reporting dashboard in Play Console. These reports give a granular view of the performance metrics of each event, displaying the results over time and by outcome – whether that’s acquisitions, opens, or updates.
Learn more about LiveOps and express interest in our beta program here.
Developers in our LiveOps beta can submit content to be featured on the Google Play Store.
As subscription business models evolve, many developers have asked us for more flexibility and less complexity in how they sell subscriptions. In a major update, we launched new subscription capabilities, allowing you to configure multiple base plans and offers for each subscription. Acquire new subscribers, incentivize upgrades, and retain existing subscribers, by creating multiple offers supporting different stages of the subscription lifecycle, all while significantly reducing the cost and complexity of managing an ever-increasing number of SKUs.
For each subscription, you can now configure multiple base plans and offers, without needing to manage an ever-increasing number of SKUs.
Plus, you can now offer prepaid plans that give users access for a fixed amount of time, and make a great option for regions where pay-as-you-go is standard or for users not ready to commit to an auto-renewing plan. Users can easily extend their access period at any time before plan expiration, with a top-up in your app, or right on the Play Store subscription screen.
That was just three launches from a whole bunch of great updates to help you grow and thrive with Play. Want to see more? Be sure to catch the full playlist on Google Play from Google I/O.
Posted by Dave Burke, VP of Engineering
Today we’re releasing the third Beta of Android 13, taking us into the final phase of our cycle where we’re focusing on polish and performance. With Android 13, we’ve built on our core themes of privacy and security, developer productivity, and tablet and large screen support.
There’s a lot to explore in Android 13, from privacy features like the new notification permission and photo picker, to productivity features like themed app icons and per-app language support, as well as modern standards like HDR video, Bluetooth LE Audio, and MIDI 2.0 over USB. We’ve also extended the newer updates we made in 12L, giving you better tools to take advantage of the 270+ million tablet and large screen devices in active use.
Beta 3 takes Android 13 to Platform Stability, which means that the developer APIs and all app-facing behaviors are now final. We’re thankful for all the feedback you’ve shared to help us get to this point! For developers, the focus is now on compatibility testing and quality as you prepare your apps for the official release later in the year!
You can get Beta 3 on your Pixel device by enrolling here for over-the-air updates. If you previously enrolled, you’ll automatically get today’s update. You can also try Android 13 Beta on select devices from several of our partners - learn more at android.com/beta. Read on for a quick look at how to get your app ready, and visit the Android 13 developer site for details.
With Beta 3, Android 13 reaches Platform Stability, a milestone that means all app-facing behaviors and APIs, including the official API Level 33 SDK and NDK APIs, are now final. So from Beta 3, you can confidently develop and release your compatibility updates knowing that the platform won’t change.
We’re asking all app and game developers to start your final compatibility testing now and prepare to publish your compatibility updates as soon as possible ahead of the final release.
For all SDK, library, tools, and game engine developers, it’s even more important to start testing now and release your compatible updates as soon as possible -- your downstream app and game developers may be blocked until they receive your updates. So when you’ve released a compatible update, be vocal and let your developers know!
App compatibility means that your app runs as intended on a new version of the platform. With each release, we make integral changes to the platform that improve privacy and security and the overall user experience across the OS. These can affect your apps, so it’s important to test your app now, make any updates needed, and publish a compatible update to your users ahead of the final release. It’s a basic but critical level of quality that your users will appreciate as they explore what’s new in Android 13.
To test your app for compatibility, just install your production app from Google Play or other source onto a device running Android 13 Beta 3. Work through all of the app’s flows and watch for functional or UI issues. Review the behavior changes to focus your testing. Here are some changes to watch for:
Also remember to test the libraries and SDKs in your app for compatibility. If you find any issues, try updating to the latest version of the library or SDK or reaching out to the developer for help.
Once you’ve published the compatible version of your current app, you can start the process to update your app's targetSdkVersion. Review the behavior changes for apps targeting Android 13 and use the compatibility framework to help you detect issues quickly. Here are some of the changes to test for (these apply only to apps with targetSdkVersion set to API 33 or higher):
NEARBY_WIFI_DEVICES
READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE
BODY_SENSORS_BACKGROUND
Android 13 builds on the tablet optimizations introduced in 12L, so as part of your testing, make sure your apps look their best on tablets and other large-screen devices. You can test with the large screens features by setting up an Android emulator in Android Studio, or you can use a large screen device from our Android 13 Beta partners. Here are some areas to watch for:
You can read more about the tablet features in Android 13 and what to test here.
Today’s Beta release has everything you need to test your app and try the Android 13 features. Just enroll your Pixel device to get the update over-the-air. To get started, set up the Android 13 SDK.
You can also test your app with Android 13 Beta on devices from several of our partners. Visit android.com/beta to see the full list of partners, with links to their sites for details on their supported devices and Beta builds, starting with Beta 1. Each partner will handle their own enrollments and support, and provide the Beta updates to you directly. For even broader testing, you can try Android 13 Beta 3 on Android GSI images, and if you don’t have a device, you can test on the Android Emulator.
For complete details on Android 13, visit the Android 13 developer site.
Posted by Krish Vitaldevara Director, Product Management, Play and Android Trust & Safety
We want to keep you updated on the privacy and security initiatives we shared earlier this year, so you can plan ahead and use new tools to safely build your business. In the past few months, we launched:
Thank you for your partnership in making Google Play a safe and trustworthy platform for everyone.
Posted by Dan Galpin, Developer Relations Engineer
Amidst the whirlwind of content at Google I/O, we shared huge announcements involving privacy, security, and the Android platform. Read on for the details, and don’t forget to watch the topic playlist on YouTube.
We recently released the first Privacy Sandbox on Android Developer Preview, so you can get an early look at the SDK Runtime and Topics API. This provides a path for new advertising solutions that improve user privacy without putting access to free content and services at risk.
You can conduct preliminary testing of these new technologies, evaluate how you might adopt them for your solutions, and share feedback with us. Learn more in the “Overview of the Privacy Sandbox in Android” session.
The new Google Play SDK index is a public portal that lists over 100 of the most widely used commercial SDKs. It contains information like which app permissions the SDK requests, statistics on the apps that use them, and which version of the SDK is most popular, so you can evaluate if an SDK is right for your business and your users. Android Studio Electric Eel allows you to view dependency insights from Google Play SDK Index; if a specific version of a library has been marked as 'outdated' by its author, a corresponding Lint warning appears when viewing that dependency definition. Learn more on our blog post and watch the “What’s new in Google Play” and “What’s new in Android development tools” sessions.
The second Beta of Android 13 is now available. You can enhance your app with Android 13 features like app-specific language support and themed app icons, while the "Basics for System Back" talk covers the new Android 13 opt-in API that lets you tell the system that you’re handling back ahead of time to make the back experience more predictable and fluid.
The "Developing Privacy User-centric Apps" session will help you get your apps ready for the latest features for privacy and security, like the new notification permission, the privacy-protecting photo picker, and improved permissions for pairing with nearby devices and accessing media files.
The "What's new in Android Media" talk will help you build with modern standards like HDR video and Bluetooth LE Audio, while the "What's New in Android Camera" talk provides a … snapshot … of what we’re doing in CameraX, such as support for video capture and WYSIWYG camera controls.
You can get started by enrolling your Pixel device here. The Android 13 Beta is now available to test on a range of devices from Asus, Lenovo, Nokia, OnePlus, Oppo, Realme, Sharp, TECNO, Vivo, Xiaomi, and ZTE - visit developer.android.com/13 to learn more.
This is just a fraction of what we're doing to improve the Android platform, user privacy, and security. Head on over to the playlist to learn more.
Posted by Leticia Lago, P&E Developer Marketing
At Google Play we’re committed to helping developers of all sizes reach their full potential, and go further, faster. Today we’re opening submissions for our two annual programs supporting the indie game community, as they bring some of the most innovative titles to players worldwide.
If you are an indie games developer, check out our Accelerator and Festival programs, where you have the chance to boost your game’s visibility, get training, and tap into our community of gaming experts.
These programs are designed to help you grow no matter what stage you are in:
After being selected as a Festival finalist and participating in the Accelerator in 2021, Co-founder of Jimjum Studios, Nimrod Kimhi said "being in the Accelerator probably saved us two years worth of mistakes." Read below to learn more about the programs.
Submissions are open until July 1st.
If you’re an indie developer who is early in your journey - either close to launching a new game or have recently launched a title - this high-impact program is designed for you.
With the help of our network of gaming experts, the Indie Games Accelerator provides education and mentorship to help you build, launch and grow successfully.
Selected game studios will be invited to take part in the 10-week acceleration program starting in September 2022. This is a highly-tailored program for small game developers from across 70+ eligible countries. It includes a series of online masterclasses, talks and gaming workshops, hosted by some of the best in the industry.
You’ll also get the chance to meet and connect with other passionate developers from around the world who are looking to take their games to the next level.
Apply to the Accelerator by July 1st.
If you have recently launched a new, high quality game on Google Play, enter your game to be showcased at the Indie Games Festival and win promotions.Once again, we are hosting three international competitions for indie game developers from selected European countries, Japan or South Korea.
The Festival jury consists of both gaming experts and Googlers, who are charged with selecting creative indie games that are ready for the spotlight.
Top indie games will be featured during the online Festival finals, where you can get your game discovered by game industry experts and players worldwide. The winners will also get featured on Google Play, prizes and additional promotions such as campaigns worth 100,000 EUR.
Apply to the Festivals in Europe, Japan or South Korea by July 1st.
For more updates about all of our programs, resources and tools for indie game developers, follow us on Twitter @GooglePlayBiz and Google Play business community on LinkedIn.