<\/p>\n
By Helen Coster<\/p>\n
Former US president Donald Trump\u2019s social media platform Truth Social has not yet been approved for distribution on Alphabet Inc\u2019s Google Play Store due to insufficient content moderation, according to a Google spokesperson on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The delay marks a setback for the app that launched in the Apple App Store on February 21. <\/p>\n
Android phones comprise about 40% of the US smartphone market. Without the Google and Apple stores, there is no easy way for most smartphone users to download Truth Social.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn August 19, we notified Truth Social of several violations of standard policies in their current app submission and reiterated that having effective systems for moderating user-generated content is a condition of our terms of service for any app to go live on Google Play,\u201d Google said. <\/p>\n
Google said it had expressed concerns to Truth Social about violations of its Play Store policies prohibiting content like physical threats and incitement to violence. <\/p>\n
Truth Social parent company Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) said it had \u201ccontinuously worked in good faith with Google to ensure that the Truth Social Android App complies with Google\u2019s policies without compromising our promise to be a haven for free speech\u201d. <\/p>\n
It added: \u201cMoreover, some of our competitors\u2019 apps are allowed in the Google Play Store despite rampantly violating Google\u2019s prohibition on sexual content and other policies, whereas Truth Social has zero tolerance for sexually explicit content.\u201d<\/p>\n
News of the Android delay was first reported by Axios.<\/p>\n
Truth Social restored Trump\u2019s presence on social media more than a year after he was banned from Twitter Inc, Facebook and Alphabet Inc\u2019s YouTube following the January 6, 2021, US Capitol riots, after he was accused of posting messages inciting violence. <\/p>\n
TMTG has pledged to deliver an \u201cengaging and censorship-free experience\u201d on Truth Social, appealing to a base that feels its views around such hot-button topics such as the outcome of the 2020 presidential election have been scrubbed from mainstream tech platforms.<\/p>\n