VLC maker put on the spot by Microsoft & Google, says app stores were a mistake

When Apple was accused by developers that they don’t open up their store to more apps, or that they need to comply to almost unattainable conditions to do so, Microsoft and Google were on developers’ side.

Recently, the U.S. Government went after all the big tech companies, including Apple, Amazon and Google regarding monopoly concerns, according to abc News. There are obviously higher issues at stake but it all starts with the small developers asking for help and recognition.

Now, the French from VideoLAN (the developers of the VLC media player) are complaining on X that they cannot update their app on Google Play and Microsoft Store because the tech companies refuse to help them. The developer clearly is fed up with the big companies’ lack of cooperation or flexibility, asking for attention on social media.

App Stores were a mistake.
Currently, we cannot update VLC on Windows Store, and we cannot update VLC on Android Play Store, without reducing security or dropping a lot of users…
For now, iOS App Store still allows us to ship for iOS9, but until when?

— VideoLAN (@videolan) March 22, 2024

VideoLAN has also posted an update about their problems on updating their VLC Android app:

If you wonder why we can’t update the VLC on Android version, it’s because Google refuses to let us update:

– either we give them our private signing keys,

– or we drop support for Android TV before API-30, and all our users on TV API<30 can’t get fixes.

From what we understand, the issue is not really about updating the app, but in fact about reducing security or dropping a lot of users, as the VLC officials mention in the X post.

So, about the Android version, VideoLAN says that the update would mean dropping support for Android TV before API-30 and leaving the Android TV users without fixes for their potential problems.

A similar issue is also reported for the Microsoft Store platform, as posted by VideoLAN on X:

If you do wonder why we don’t update VLC on the Windows Store or why VLC/iOS can’t connect properly to OneDrive shares, it’s because Microsoft Kafkaïesque bureaucracy refuses to help us. We’re only trying to contact someone since 2years… Any day now…

As previously mentioned, the Cloud AI Partner Program requires users to sign in with a Microsoft Entra ID (formerly known as AAD) to onboard. Attempting to use a personal account (MSA) will fail and redirect you back to the homepage (the UX could definitely be improved!).

If you…

— Rudy Huyn (@RudyHuyn) March 23, 2024

To this accusation, the French finally got a reaction from Rudy Huyn, Principal Architect from Microsoft. In his reply, the official said that there is a misunderstanding on VideoLAN’s part and they need to log into the Cloud AI Partner Program using a Microsoft Entra ID account, not a personal, MSA account.

VLC replied later to say that this approach isn’t working either, issuing another cry for help.

Setting the technical problems aside, the VideoLAN representative said that they asked for help repeatedly for a year without any results from either companies.

Is it just a misunderstanding or is it the fact that Google and Microsoft don’t really care about solving some issues for a French developer who is offering a free media player? We can’t make assumptions or put anyone in the corner but most of the times, there isn’t smoke without fire.

And the most affected by this issue are really the VLC users who can expect instability and security issues in the absence of an update. Fortunately, the Windows users can still download the latest VLC version directly from the dedicated website. However, there is no download link for the Android app on their website.

What do you think about this whole situation? Let us know about your opinion in the comments section below.