Google’s new Android developer verification program and compliance with the Digital Markets Act

Question for written answer E-001419/2026
to the Commission
Rule 144
Christel Schaldemose (S&D)

Google has announced a new Android developer verification program, which is expected to be phased in soon. The new updates mean that Android app developers - including those who distribute apps outside Google Play, including via third-party app stores and sideloading - have to register with Google, provide official identification, pay a fee and accept Google's terms and conditions in order for their apps to be installed on Android devices.

For now, Google's promise of an 'advanced flow' feature specifically designed for superusers - and thus not ordinary users - is the only way to avoid this, but it requires an unnecessarily large number of steps and a total of 24 hours for individuals to complete. At the moment it can be done immediately, and is not hidden away in the developer settings.

In the light of the foregoing:

• 1.Does the Commission take the view that a requirement for the central registration and verification of all Android developers, especially those outside Google Play, is compatible with the Digital Markets Act?
• 2.Will the Commission consider such requirements to be a restriction on sideloading and third-party app stores?
• 3.How will the Commission ensure that security requirements such as these are not used as a way of circumventing the Digital Markets Act?

Submitted: 8.4.2026