Donald Trump-backed social network Truth Social has managed to get its release on the Google Play Store after a months-long delay due to concerns over content moderation policies. According to Axios, the two sides had been in talks about the app’s approval since the end of August.
Truth Social was released on Apple’s App Store in February, but until now Android users had to either use the web version of the service or install the app manually. Google was already known to highlight content moderation issues in the app, including physical threats and content that incites violence.
Google requires apps with user-generated content to have policies to prevent abusive behavior, such as violent threats, and mechanisms to enforce those rules. Truth Social’s service failed to meet these standards when it first attempted to launch on Android in August. However, the company has apparently now resolved this issue.
“Apps may be distributed on Google Play provided they follow our developer guidelines, including the requirement to effectively moderate user-generated content and remove objectionable posts such as posts that incite violence,” a Google spokesperson said in a statement.
Truth Social isn’t the only app that’s been subject to extra scrutiny on this policy. Google put forward the same conditions when it removed Parler from the app store last January. The app was only able to return to the store last month.
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