How Google Is Slowly KILLING Android?

People buy Androids for THREE reasons.

They are cheaper than iPhone, Easier to customize,  And let you install from anywhere you want.

But if you're watching this in 2026,  

two of these advantages are already  gone, and the third one is on its way.

On August 25th, 2025

Google announced one of the biggest  turning points in Android's history.

Google declared a war on sideloading,  a decision that everyone called:

"If you lock these devices down, they  become no better than Apple iPhone."

"I don't use Android because I  believe it is operational and  

functionally better. I use it  because it gives me freedom. "

"You might as well just [ __ ]  buy an iPhone at that point!"

This is the story of how  Android lost its identity, 

and how greed is destroying the  number one example of "Freedom"

or as I like to call "The  Applification of Android".

In 2005, Google bought Android.

And Yes!

Google did not create Android from scratch,  but bought it as a startup for "$50 Million",

Which can only be described as: 

"One of the best steals... I  mean, deals in the tech history.

Google wanted a mobile operating system  that wasn't controlled by a single company, 

one that is easier for developers to work on,

where users could decide  what they wanted to install 

and what they could modify in their devices.

At that time, nobody understood why a search  

engine company was buying  a phone software startup.

Nokia and Motorola controlled almost  half of the global Mobile market.

And that dominance gave SymbianOS a huge advantage since it was used on nearly every Nokia phone.

BlackBerry came second and was mostly  popular between business people.

And Windows Mobile... Well, it's Windows Mobile.

Years passed and Android partnered with HTC,  

and together they were secretly working  on their first Android phone prototype.

A phone that looked very similar to BlackBerry 

with a physical keyboard, a small  non-touch screen and navigation buttons.

HTC was making the hardware  and Android the software.

The phone was planned to hit the market in 2008, 

but just a year before...  Apple dropped its first iPhone.

Google and HTC knew that their prototype wouldn't  even come close to the iPhone's features.

So, Google decided to scrap  everything and rebuild from scratch.

And after one year of hard work, the  first Android finally hit the market.

And finally... a worthy competitor  to the legendary iPhone.

Within one year of launch, Android was running  

on 25 different phone models  across multiple manufacturers.

But on the other hand, Apple had only one.

The first Android phone had a physical  keyboard that was sliding out, a track ball,  

and a user interface that looked  like it was designed on Extra Time.

But the best thing? Was that  the phone was actually Yours.

You could install apps from  outside the Android market, 

Root the device, Flash custom ROMs...

or even change the entire operating  system and nobody would care.

And unlike iPhone, everything  on Android was completely Free.

Because Google didn't even have a payment  system before 2009, let alone In-App Purchases.

The iPhone had these features from its first days.

But all that changed when  Samsung entered the game.

For context, Samsung wasn't a fan of Android.

In fact, Samsung was investing heavily  in its own operating system, "Bada"

But it completely failed because of the heavy  restrictions and developers were ignoring it.

Samsung tried again with  "Tyzen", but failed once more.

So, they ditched everything  and went all-in on Android.

And within 4 years, Samsung became the  biggest smartphone manufacturer in the world.

And this is where the Chaos began!

While Apple was carefully  building its walled garden,  

Android was literally the lawless wild west.

You wanted an app that wasn't  allowed on the Play Store? 

Just check a box and install whatever  you want from wherever you like.

A game or app asking you to pay? 

Just sideloadad it from an online  market or use Lucky Patcher.

Not happy with how your phone looks? 

Just install a Custom Launcher and  the whole interface will change.

Samsung's TouchWiz was a bit laggy back then. 

And to fix that, you didn't  need to buy a new phone.

Legends like Cyanogen Mod  and AOKP even allowed you 

to customize things that the phone manufacturer  itself wouldn't allow you to touch.

This was literally the  definition of "Buying is Owning".

But the big question here is: "At What Cost?"

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Freedom sounds great until  someone uses it against you.

If you ever used Android back in the days,  

you probably heard of or even used  an app called "Lucky Patcher".

But if you are not familiar with it,  

Lucky Patcher was a tool that  couldn't be found on the Play Store.

And if you wanted to install it, you had to  download it manually from your phone browser.

The idea behind it is simple!

Imagine you're playing a game and to get  that Cool Skin, Unlock the next level,  

or just Get rid of the annoying  ads... you had to spend some money.

But with Lucky Patcher, you  were literally scamming the app!

When you click Pay, you're actually paying  Google, which pays the company behind it.

And for the game to verify, it just  asks Google if that person really paid.

Lucky Patcher would intercept that  question and confirm it by itself.

At that time, if you wanted to scare any  game developer, just mention Lucky Patcher.

[Lucky Patcher Meme].

For users, it felt like a "Cheat Code", but for developers, it was a "Nightmare".

The independent developers who  spent months building games 

were watching their revenue fly with the wind.

A Yankee Group survey found that  roughly one in three Android developers 

reported losing more than  $10,000 directly to Piracy.

And if the game developer relied only  on ads instead of In-App Purchases, 

Lucky Patcher could scan and locate  those ads placements and wipe them out.

Lucky Patcher wasn't alone on this.

Happy Mode and AC Market built entire platforms around distributing modified APKs.

If the app was paid on Play Store,  you'd probably find it there for free.

Thousands of Apps, Millions of Downloads,  Heavy Losses, all outside Google's scope.

But Piracy wasn't actually the bigger problem!

Because even if you disagree with  Google, and want complete freedom, 

you still need to have Protection.

And the biggest problem here was Malwares.

When you build an open system and let  anyone install anything from anywhere,  

Disasters start showing.

In 2017, Security researchers at Checkpoint 

Software discovered a virus  called the "Judy Malware".

The scary part is that this malware  had quietly infected up to 36.5  

million Android devices over just a few years.

And what's scarier... 

was that it came mainly through 41  apps on Google Play Store itself!

[Apple laught]

Some of which had been there for years, passing  every Google security check with no suspicions.

And Judy was just one of many.

By the time Android's malware problem was being  openly discussed, the numbers were staggering.

Reports found that apps installed  outside the Play Store made users  

dramatically more likely to encounter a malware.

Google would later claim that sideloaded apps were  

50 times more likely to contain  malware than Play Store apps.

Developers were losing money. Users were cracking and later crying.

And Google was losing trust,  but more importantly... Money.

The open Ecosystem that had made Android great 

was slowly becoming an open  wound that needs intervention.

So Google here had to make a choice.

A choice that Apple had already made from day one. 

A choice that would shape the  entire identity of Android.

If you watched my previous video  about the Applification of Samsung,  

you'd probably remembered that after Apple's  controversial move in the iPhone 7 and iPhone 12,  

where Apple removed the headphone  jack and charger from the box and  

started selling its own earpods, the whole  industry started an Applification trend.

Apple removed the headphones  and charger from the iPhone  

box and nearly every smartphone  manufacturer followed after.

Apple proved that users would accept Restrictions, if the packaging was Fancy.

Just mention words like "Security and Environment  

Protection..." and people  would accept it and move on.

Android wasn't far from this.

And from a quick observation,  Google understood that Apple's  

iOS had no Piracy and Malware problems  thanks to its Stricter environment.

Developers were making more. And Apple's earnings were growing too.

So, Google started moving.

Malware appears. Google creates Play Protect. Modified apps. Developers started requiring  

internet connection before you  can even touch their app or games.

Google also assisted with the Play Integrity  

feature that made it easier for  developers to reduce cheating.

Not only that, but Google also started making  stricter guidelines for apps to be accepted.

Stronger Content policies and Longer  Review process that didn't exist before.

This was the first time in history, where the gap  

between owning an Android and owning an  iPhone started shrinking year after year.

Phone manufacturers on the  other hand started moving too.

Samsung from its side locked its  Bootloaders and introduced Knox Security. 

The one you usually see when  restarting your phone or booting it.

Knox works like an invisible  seal inside your phone. 

The moment you Root or Modify your system, that  seal breaks and your phone is permanently gone.

You can still use it and see the interface,  but most apps and features will stop working.

OnePlus went to the next level and betrayed its whole community back in 2025.

OnePlus built its entire reputation on one idea. 

"We are not Samsung, We are not  Apple, We are the true Androids".

The ones modders and developers love.

The only company that made rooting  phones easier than installing apps.

Everything was perfect about  OnePlus until the merge with OPPO,  

where massive and radical  restrictions got introduced.

All these moves and more made  Android secured over the years.

But on the other side, this was quietly  destroying the core idea of Android.

And when most people assumed it would stop there,  

Google came up with one of the  biggest decisions in the tech history.

A decision that crossed a line  Android users thought was Untouchable. 

A line that would change everything about Android.

Sideloading is one of the biggest  and most successful marketing lies 

made by Google and Apple.

Because if we take a closer look on that term,  

it basically means that both Android and  Apple has only two default App Stores.

And if you used any alternative way to download  your app, you're taking the uncommon path.

And to choke that path even more, Google  came up with that controversial decision.

So, let me explain what exactly will happen.

The normal path for a developer  in the past was simple.

Sign up for a Google Play Console, Pay the $25  fee, Pass the security check, and upload the app.

Within a few days, it would  be available for download.

If the developer refused to pay or  preferred to not register with Google,  

he can just go to an online store or make  his own and post his app there for Free.

You from your side download it from there. 

Check install from unknown sources  and the app is ready to go.

Probably most of us have done  it at least once in the past.

But with the new decision, this  process will change drastically!

From now on, every developer will  be obliged to pay that $25 Fee.

Not only that, but also verify  his identity with Google,  

even if his app won't land on the Play Store.

If the developer refused and  didn't want to submit his ID,  

the installation process  would be a complete nightmare.

You have to enable Developer Mode,  complete some security questions,  

restart the phone, and wait 24  hours to complete the process.

From a security point, this move is a LifeSaving.

Old people get pressured by  scammers in calls to install  

applications that would steal their Life Saving.

This step will give them enough time to think. 

Check that no one is guiding  them and make the right choice.

But the darker side is that the ID requirement  will cause a disaster for developers.

If you're building an app for fun  and want to share it with a friend,  

you have to verify and pay Google.

If you're an Activist or a Privacy Tool developer,  

your identity itself isn't private, meaning  governments could just request it any time.

This will also scare modding developers  from potential Legal Actions.

Google won't use these IDs for  anything other than security, 

but if a company wanted to sue a developer,

it could request their identity from Google, and a court could order Google to provide it.

Google will gain much more control  after this, but it's not entirely Wrong.

The point here is that with  all these restrictions,  

Android is slowly becoming one  step away from being an iOS copy.

So, the real question here is "Is Google  protecting Android or just want more control?"

Let me know your opinion down in the comments.

And if you want to debate more, you can join  me on Discord from the link in the description.

Subscribe and like, and thanks for watching.