Back in November, many users started seeing targeted promos for apps when they opened the Play Store’s search menu on Android, but Google assured us at the time that these weren’t ads — merely proactive recommendations for apps you might be interested in, given to you at an opportune time when you might have been looking for them anyway. Now, a new plague of Play Store search ads is cropping up for many users, and this time they're just that — ads.
Android expert Mishaal Rahman received a tip about the ads, and it sparked a Twitter conversation that revealed just how widespread the Play Store's new search "feature" has become. Already, users in the UK, Japan, and several other regions are seeing ads when tapping the search bar, suggesting that Google might be in the early stages of a widespread rollout.
A few examples of the Play Store's new search ads (via Twitter)
One thing that makes these clearly different from the recommendations Google started rolling out in November is the "Ad" badge next to the new suggestions. In most cases, the ads appear mixed in with Google's proactive recommendations, so it could be that only users who have the suggestions feature enabled on their accounts are getting the ads.
Rahman also notes that when compared to the initial rollout of search suggestions last year, the new interface people have started seeing this week includes more information about the apps. The user rating and total number of downloads are now listed in the subtitle beneath each suggestion, including both ads and the proactive recommendations.
With ads being such a large part of Google's business model, this isn't completely unexpected. It's possible that Google is testing this as a new revenue stream to offset some of the losses it's taking in Play Store revenue in regions where lawmakers have forced the company to provide an option for third-party billing systems. Just recently, Google revealed plans for alternative Play Store payments in the UK that would see the company take a reduced cut of app sales, and this follows similar policy changes in India and South Korea.