Google removed an ice fishing game for using the text "ice fishing". Alternative Android app stores?

PaulH

You read that right. Google says an ice fishing game can't mention "ice fishing".

Ice Fishing Derby was the first Gideros project I completed, and my first published mobile game, on Google Play and the App Store since 2013. Suddenly Google said it's in violation of their impersonation policy, that it's trying to present itself as something it's not, based on the name and description, specificially for using the "brand" of "ice fishing" without authorization. Of course this is absurd. That's not a brand but the name of a sport, like "figure skating" or "downhill skiing". Nobody has trademarked the term (nor could they in the US.) I appealed through the developer console. It took them more than a week to respond, and their response was the same, that I'm using "ice fishing" without authorization. They say they'll accept written documentation signed by "both parties" authorizing me to use the name, but of course nobody owns the term, so no such other party exists. I submitted documentation that I've been publishing games using that generic phrase since 2008 (a Windows version), granting my Google developer account permission to use the name. That seems to have been ignored. I posted for help on the Google community support board, and a product expert says he escalated that to "the team" a few days ago. But today Google removed the app.

My latest game is Ice Fishing Derby 2, the sequel to the game they've just removed, and I've been working to route people from the old one to the new one, which is vastly better and earns much more, so the harm to my business is minimal. I've got a name change pending review to call it "Icey Fishing Derby" (I'm considering "Winter Fishing Derby" but I'm going to continue to try to get that reversed. I doubt an actual human being at Google has has anything to do with their finding or the appeal.

My new sequel also uses the phrase "ice fishing" in its title, and it's my top earner by a wide margin. If they removed that from the store for the crime of mentioning the name of the sport in the game, frankly I'd be tempted to stop publishing through Google entirely.

So I'm wondering... Has anyone here had any success publishing Android apps through other app stores? I used to publish via the Amazon app store, but they now publish only to Fire devices. I can't imagine any non-Google app store gets anywhere close to the traffic they get, but the game's own web page could direct people who are looking for the game to other stores.

keszegh

that is ridiculous. i'm sorry to hear that. the problem is indeed that you may boycott google store but you loose much more with this than they do. so you should try to make them understand the issue.
and/or rename the app somewhat. winter is a nice workaround. ICE does not sound so good nowadays anyway...
do you publish on ios? might be worth, if your app was successful on google.

keszegh

you could put it on itch with android/windows versions, i think there android apks are less common, but it is a friendly alternative store with small revenue share.