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Smartphones have become an essential part of modern life but getting stuck at home made them even more critical. But as more and more people rely on the Internet and mobile devices, the importance of keeping these places safe from not just malware but also misinformation is becoming just as critical. Responding to the global situation, Google is making a few changes to its Google Play rules, especially when it comes to apps that relate to the COVID-19 coronavirus.

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There have been quite a number of streaming services voicing their support to promote the stability of the Internet by throttling the quality of videos or offering more content to help keep people inside longer. One name that is noticeably missing is, of course, Google Play Movies. It may not have enough users to bring the Internet down but, more importantly, it doesn't have that much free content to entice them in the first place. That could, however, be changing soon based on clues found in Play Movies' Android app.

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Thanks to the prevalence of all sorts of gaming today, the stereotype of gamers being anti-social loners is fading away. Gaming, especially thanks to the Internet, is now being seen as a social activity that connects people from diverse walks of life all around the world. Even mobile games, those ones you play glued to your screen, are social as well, or at least highly competitive. It seems that Google is finally taking note and will add some social features to its Android gaming platform, including a rather odd one.

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It has been almost a year since Huawei came under the US government's ban hammer, effectively barred from doing business or making new acquisitions from most US companies. Over the course of the months, some of its partners, like Microsoft, have either voiced support for the embattled Chinese giant while others, like ARM, have found ways to circumvent the rather encompassing but still US-only directive. Huawei's biggest partner in the mobile market has been curiously mum but Google is now breaking its silence and it isn't looking good for Huawei.

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The year 2020 will prove to the world just how ready Huawei is to live in a world without Google on Android. Huawei was blocked last year from working with Google directly, leading them to seek an alternative to GMS: Google Mobile Services, aka official license from Google to include Google apps and the Google Play digital content store on Android devices. Here in 2020, Huawei's about to release their first phone with both the Huawei app store and HMS: Huawei Mobile Services, and it won't be the last.

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MWC 2020 may no longer be taking place but for the companies who already hedged their bets on the annual event, the show must go on. In their own way and own venue, of course. Honor, who suffers the same fate as parent company Huawei, will be live streaming from Barcelona next week and it may be one to watch if rumors are true that the Honor V30 and V30 Pro it will announce will also be the first time we'll see Huawei's Google Play replacement out in the wild.

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Messaging platforms and services aren't the only confusing things that Google is offering. It also has more than one music or video service and it can sometimes be a guessing game on which one will survive. Almost two years ago, Google already declared that YouTube Music is the winner but it has so far failed to incorporate features that would make the transition from Google Play Music less painful. Now it seems that the death knell is ringing and that may happen sooner rather than later.

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Things have been quiet on Huawei's side of the mobile market lately, partly because of the attention that the likes of Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S20 and Galaxy Z Flip are getting. It's also partly because of the tension between the US and China have mellowed down a bit. That could end up getting the ban on Huawei lifted which puts it in a rather unusual position. Refuting an earlier report, Huawei clarifies that it isn't abandoning Google's apps and services for good but still leaves the door open for that possibility.

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Huawei's troubles with the US government has indirectly resulted in Google's role in the Android ecosystem being put under a microscope. More than just being the main developer of the platform itself, its Google Play Store has become an indispensable part of the Android experience, despite being proprietary and requiring certification that may be blocked by the US government. Google has just released a report on "how" Google Play works and what it has done for the platform, which is also its indirect way of showing how important it is to Android phones.

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Fortnite was re-submitted to Google Play in December of 2019, and a bit of confusion ensued. Epic Games apparently attempted to get an exception to the billing agreement made between developers and Google for inclusion in Google Play. They did not get said exception. Google decided that Epic Games did not deserve any sort of exception as such, and that all developers needed to abide by the same rules, even when the game is as exceptional as Fortnite.

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Google Play Pass, the platform's' subscription service, has added dozens of new apps, Google has announced. The new additions cover many genres, including mobile games like Jurassic World: Dinosaurs and Drive Simualtor, as well as art apps like Pixel Art and a journaling app called Diaro, among others. The new additions join hundreds of other included apps.

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The rumors were only partially correct. The US Commerce Department has indeed thrown Huawei a lifeline by granting it another Temporary General License extension but not the short 14-day period earlier believed. In fact, for the third time, Huawei is being given another 90 days to do business with US companies. Despite what looks like a generous reprieve, however, the fate of Huawei's mobile products, particularly the Mate 30 series, still remains uncertain because of the limits the extension imposes on Huawei's trade with US companies.

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