My app was rejected on Google Play!? Details on the reason and how I handled it!

Hello.
I'm Nomushin, the smartphone development team member.

When it comes to submitting Android/iOS apps to app stores,
there are tons of problems related to the App Store, but you don't hear about as many issues with Google Play, right?
You register the necessary information and APK file through the Google Play Console, press the "Publish" button, and it's published in a few hours...
That is, if everything goes smoothly.

Whether fortunate or unfortunate, I had the experience of having my app rejected by Google Play, so
I'm going to record the process and its outcome in chronological order.

It's a bit long, but
I hope it will be helpful in resolving problems for others who are experiencing similar issues!

[Day 1] 8:15 App publishing procedure completed

The app was scheduled to be released by 12:00 PM that day, but due to a bug fix discovered at the last minute, the release submission was delayed until this late hour.
Google Play usually publishes apps within 2-3 hours of the submission process, so we were hoping we'd just make it.
However...

[Day 1] 12:06 "Some apps have been deleted or disapproved"

More than three hours have passed since the process was completed, but the game still hasn't been published on Google Play.
I kept checking the console anxiously, and finally the status changed.

Huh...?

I see some unfamiliar characters.

By this time, it was already past 12:00, the scheduled time for the app's release.
I frantically contacted Google for help.

[Day 1] 12:32 Asked Google...cannot do it!

A summary of the rejection reason is posted on the Google Play Console.
I was in a panic so I don't have any screenshots, but
it seems the rejection was due to "violation of the impersonation and intellectual property rights policies."
(I later learned that at this point, a detailed reason for the rejection and guidelines for action were sent via email. At the time, I had submitted the application using my own developer account, so I wasn't able to check my email.If your application is rejected, check your email first!)

At this point, it clicked for me.
This is because this app was a collaboration app between companies.
The collaborating company had already released an app under its own account.
It's perhaps natural that an app with a similar icon and the same service name would be viewed with suspicion.

In any case, the problem needs to be resolved as quickly as possible so that the app can be released.
It would be faster and more reliable to ask them directly how to deal with the issue rather than resubmitting an appeal and waiting for the result.

immediately.
Contact Google Play Developer Support

There are two ways to contact us: chat or email.
However, email inquiries are...

We usually respond to emails within 48 business hours

That is out of the question now

Let's chat

Available hours:
Monday to Friday: 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM (excluding 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM)
, excluding public holidays and company holidays.

During lunch break...!

With the customers feeling quite tense, we waited until 1:00 p.m., gathering information..

[Day 1] 13:00 Chat with Google Support

It's 13:00.
I'll immediately use the inquiry page I mentioned earlier to send a chat inquiry.

I'll enter my name, email address (the one I use to log in to Google Play Console), and a brief description of my inquiry, then submit it.
In reality, I entered the following in the description field:

This morning, the app I published on Google Play (app URL) was rejected with the message, "Approval has been denied for violating our impersonation and intellectual property rights policies."
This app(collaboration company)with(collaboration service)"(collaboration service)so does this mean that it was judged to be
Also, what steps should I take to get this app approved?

Once the chat is accepted, a dedicated window opens, and the conversation with the representative begins. I
was a little apprehensive, wondering if I would need to communicate in English, but it seems the person on the other end is Japanese.
What a relief!

The full chat is below:

The person in charge (tentative) 1:04 PM
will handle your inquiry. Please enter your question and press the Enter key to send your message.

Representative (tentative) 1:05 PM
Mr./Ms. Nomura,
thank you for contacting Google Play Developer Support.
Once this chat is finished, you will be presented with a survey regarding the quality of this support. We would appreciate it if you could take the time to answer it. We
are currently reviewing the information you have sent us, so please wait a moment.

Yuki Nomura 1:06 PM
Thank you for your cooperation this afternoon.

Representative (tentative) 1:06 PM
We understand you have concerns regarding Google Play's policies.
We apologize, but this contact point does not have the authority to provide information regarding Google Play's various policies and terms. Would it be alright if we forwarded your inquiry to our policy team?
The policy team will then contact you via email.

Yuki Nomura 1:07 PM
Understood. Do you know how long it might take to receive a reply?

Asahi 1:08 PM
I cannot give a definitive answer, but I believe I can usually reply within 48 hours.

Yuki Nomura 1:09
It seems it will take quite a while this afternoon. We were planning to issue a press release today to coincide with the app's release, so we would appreciate it if you could respond as quickly as possible.

Yuki Nomura 1:10 PM
Thank you in advance for this afternoon.

Person in charge (tentative) 1:10 PM
Understood. I will urge them to respond as soon as possible.

Person in Charge (Provisional) 1:11
Do you have any other questions regarding the Developer Console this afternoon?

Yuki Nomura 1:11 PM
No, this time it's just about the app being rejected.

Representative (tentative) 1:12
We will be closing chat support this afternoon.
We will contact you shortly, so please wait a little while longer.

Yuki Nomura 1:12
Thank you for your cooperation this afternoon.

at 1:12 PM
. The chat connection has ended.
[Name of person in charge] has ended the chat.

In the end, the issue wasn't resolved through chat, but they did forward the matter to Google's policy team

In addition, we will email the following to the Google policy team as evidence that this is a collaborative app:
• URL of the press release posted on the collaborating company's website
• Collaborating source - PDF file of the contract signed with the collaborating company

However, on this day, there was no contact whatsoever

[Day 2] 8:14 Email from the Google Play team

Thank you for contacting the Google Play team

Our review has revealed that your app, "(App Name)"(Package Name) , violates Google Play's policy regarding the misuse of copyrighted content.

Policy statement: Apps that infringe copyright are not permitted.
Your app contains the following violation:(name of collaborating company's app)(please see attached screenshot).

If you have obtained permission from the content owner, please submit one of the following documents in PDF format by replying to this email to prove permission:
A document (stamped or signed) confirming the mutual agreement between the app developer and the content owner regarding the use of the content; or
a document (stamped or signed) confirming that the content owner is granting the app developer permission to use the content.

For detailed policy information and examples of violations, please refer to the following link:
Developer Policy Center
Unauthorized Use of Copyrighted Content

If you have fixed the violations and believe your app is in compliance with our policies, please resubmit your app and we will review it again

This decision will not affect your Google Play Developer Account at this time,
but if we find multiple violations, we may suspend the app or your Google Play Developer Account.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us.
Thank you for your continued support of Google Play.

Google Play Team
xxx

It seems our argument isn't quite getting through, but
it appears the icon image's logo is being deemed a policy violation because it's similar to an icon image already released by our collaborating company. They require either:
• A document (stamped or signed) confirming mutual agreement between the app developer and content owner regarding content use;
or • A document (stamped or signed) confirming the content owner's permission for the app developer to use the content
. Otherwise, the app won't pass review.
The file and URL I sent yesterday aren't considered sufficient evidence.
This is quite troublesome...

After consulting with the customer, we decided to keep the icon unchanged and have them complete the necessary documents

[Day 2] 13:48 Emailed the documents to the Google Play team

Now that you have prepared the necessary documents, I will send them to Google immediately.
The email will be in the following format.

To the Google Play representative:

Thank you for your continued support

Regarding this matter, we have prepared a document (stamped or signed) confirming the mutual agreement between the app developer and the content owner regarding the use of the content.
Please check the attached document in this email.

the release of this app
our collaborating companywill affect the schedules of our clients who have released apps for

This is a rather presumptuous request, but I
would be grateful for your consideration.

Thank you for confirming the app's approval

Applications are only accepted via email, so you won't get an immediate response.
While real-time responses are only available via chat,
based on yesterday's exchange, the chat representative doesn't have the authority to provide policy-related guidance, so you'll likely only receive a templated response.

All we can do is wait

[Day 2] 18:00 Reminder email sent to Google Play team

Since our client is pressuring us, I'll send a reminder email to Google, even though I don't expect much.
However, simply sending a reminder would be one-sided, so I'll also include an inquiry asking if there's anything we can do to expedite the publication.

...But still no reply

[Day 3] 8:56 I received an email from Google Play confirming approval!

Finally, the long-awaited approval email arrived!
I quickly resubmitted the app from the Google Play Console.

It should be okay this time

[Day 3] 10:50 App released

about two hours from the app's "resend" function.
It took over two days and two hours from the initial publication request to finally be published.
It was a long wait...

summary

・Google Play also has rejections!

No, I was aware that it existed, but I wasn't aware of when or what was being checked. There shouldn't be any
manual checks between the time I publish from the Console and when it's published on Google Play. It was probably rejected because an automated check found similarities between my app and an existing app's images.

If you have any questions, please contact developer support via chat

Chat is only available on weekdays from 10:00 to 17:00 (excluding 12:00 to 13:00), but you are likely to receive appropriate advice. If you are unsure, try asking a question via chat

・Check whether prior notification to Google Play is required

If you have obtained prior permission from the content owner for app development using content owned by a third party,
this form (https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/6320428you can submit proof of this permission to the Google Play team in advance using

This problem could have been avoided if we had done exactly this, so it's worth keeping in mind

·others

This is a minor point, but all the emails I received from Google that crossed into the next day arrived around 8 AM.
After sending an inquiry via email, be sure to check your email first thing in the morning.

lastly

I have launched "SEKARAKU Lab," a service site for the system development company I belong to.
Beyond offers a one-stop service from server design and construction to operation, so please feel free to contact us if you have any problems with server-side development.
SEKARAKU Lab:https://sekarakulab.beyondjapan.com/
 
Have a great developer life!