Google makes money from ads, so it’s no surprise that the company continues to add more and more ads to its platforms and services. Recent changes to the Play Store show the expansion of the company’s advertising capabilities.
New placements in the Play Store
Although the extent to which the new ad slots are being rolled out is not yet clear, you can see from the screenshots that Google is rolling out new placements in the Play Store. The increase in the advertising section in the “Offers for you” area is especially noticeable.
- Increasing App Rows: Previously, this section only displayed one app row, showing a maximum of three apps at a time. However, with the new changes, users now see two rows of apps.
- More screen space for ads: App thumbnails get bigger, taking up more space below the ad section. As a result of adding yet another row of ads, normal apps are displayed much lower, which requires more time and energy from users when navigating the Play Store.
- User Challenges: Some users may find the new layout complex or confusing, especially if they are used to the previous layout.
Testing new layouts and plans for the future
It is not yet clear how widespread the new ad placement scheme is. It is likely that the company is testing new layouts with a limited number of users or in certain countries before deciding on implementation.
- Limited rollout and testing: Checking placements across devices shows that some ad placements look different. This may indicate that the company is conducting tests on selected user groups to get feedback and apply improvements before the final implementation.
- Future Changes: Google will likely monitor user feedback and test results before deciding whether to roll out new layouts and ad placements to the Play Store in full.
This gives a glimpse of the expansion of Google’s advertising options in the Play Store and the uncertainty surrounding the introduction of new layouts, concludes NIXsolutions. A clearer picture of the real impact of these changes on user experience and advertising opportunities in the Play Store is expected in the future.