Europe’s GDPR coincides with huge drop in Android apps
Europe’s data protection regime has reduced the number of apps available in Google Play by “a third,” increased costs, and reduced developer revenues, according to a recent study titled, “GDPR and the Lost Generation of Innovative Apps“.
In the paper researc hers examined the impact of Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on the mobile app business and finds that number of Android apps fell by about a third in the quarters following the implementation of the law, according to the paper. And under GDPR, fewer new apps were created – new app entries fell by 47.2 percent – and usage of those remaining fell 45.3 percent.
However, as Dr Lukasz Olejnik, independent privacy researcher and consultant, pointed out, “The authors apparently ignore, or are unaware of, the fact that prior to GDPR data protection laws existed in Europe, as well.” “Data processors had to have a proper legal ground for processing data, one of those is consent. So what is the reported impact in the paper really showing? Non-compliance and privacy abuses prior to GDPR?”
Source: Europe’s GDPR coincides with huge drop in Android apps • The Register
