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Handle Copycats (License fraud)

Open theScrabi opened this issue 7 years ago • 226 comments

Follow these instructions if you want to report an app on the Google Play Store!


Hey guys, I happen to notice some new copycats which seemingly violate our License.

Once again, it's OK to copy NewPipe as long as you do not violate our GPLv3 License. Please inform yourself about GPLv3 before forking!!!

I already mailed some of the copy kiddies, but they seem to not react on it (like always), so my question is how should we handle these copycats in the future?

List of known and active copies/forks

In the Google Play Store

In the Huawei AppGallery

  • (to be added)

In the Samsung Galaxy Store

  • (to be added)

Other copies/forks

theScrabi avatar May 08 '17 10:05 theScrabi

Thats embarasing. How come they even stay on playstore.

https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/contact/takedown

ksh-b avatar May 08 '17 17:05 ksh-b

I've tried that, but google does not seem to respond? Maybe I'm doing something wrong here. Howerver, I know that it works sice there was already a fork that got kicket out.

theScrabi avatar May 08 '17 18:05 theScrabi

don't worry, you don't need to to do anything. it is impossible(99.99%) a single app stays alive until 500 downloads. Play store takes care of it extremely very well as YT is his own too. they can earn 1-2$ but loose 25$ (account registration fee). So, it is not worth that much effort to do something. they punish themselves.

A few examples can be found but they won't live longer and the ads will be eventually ceased.

yasinalm avatar May 23 '17 09:05 yasinalm

Sure? audiorocket sem tho have more than 400k downloads.

theScrabi avatar May 23 '17 11:05 theScrabi

Unfortunately while copycats will always be there (I have some on my hands too) it's just easier for you to send a take-down notice to Google and let them deal with it.

That being said, Google hates your app so they might just not be taking it down in spite. Who cares, the average 99% of people in the world likes it anyway ;)

ericswpark avatar Jul 21 '17 14:07 ericswpark

This list has been mined out of 600 MiB of parsed email data. If you can spot some of them, please get in touch with us.

Edit: These are package names I parsed from the ones in the field that was added a few weeks after the introduction of the bug reporting. For this and other reasons, this list is not complete, there might be more.

co.at.newpipe
com
com.akkayaxm.mscPlayer
com.cubic3.MyDownloader
com.dl.video
com.facecampt.free.music.player
com.FloTemp
com.gawo.rohgf
com.green.music
com.halara.trap
com.hvlapps.freemusicplayer
com.mp3musicdownloader.mp3.music.downloader
com.mp3musicdownload.music
com.mp3musicdownload.musicmp3
com.mp3music.newlife
com.mpool.mytube
com.musicmp3downloader.ilovemp3
com.musicmp3.newmusic
com.musicmp3.new\nmusic
com.music.paradise
com.mwiz.pingmusic
com.tenlishir
com.youtube.audiorocket
com.youtubed.ydownloader
com.youtubelistening.youtubebackground
com.youtubelite.floattube
com.zbm.probasse
idev4mobile.karaoke
idev4mobile.videotube
inc.players.youlayer
musicstream.videostream.newpipe
org.bardo.newpipe
org.le.keep_video
org.schabi.newpipe
org.schabi.vbl2013
org.schabi.videodownloader
org.schabi.youdownload
org.schabi.youdownloader
org.testng01.tubeb44

TheAssassin avatar Aug 01 '17 22:08 TheAssassin

I've created a small script to check if they are on google play: https://gist.github.com/coffeemakr/8862e7903c4bea21b99c6a457268af71

The following packages are on google play:

A copyright violation can be submitted with this form: https://support.google.com/legal/contact/lr_dmca?&product=googleplay The description on how to fill out the form can be found here: https://support.google.com/legal/troubleshooter/1114905#ts=1115643%2C1115789%2C1117010%2C1697925

coffeemakr avatar Aug 02 '17 07:08 coffeemakr

I didn't expect it to be so much xD

theScrabi avatar Aug 02 '17 09:08 theScrabi

Beware that this is not even the whole list, only the ones we captured on a side-channel. But yes, it's quite an amount. Time to take half a day and send some DMCA takedown notices, @theScrabi.

TheAssassin avatar Aug 02 '17 09:08 TheAssassin

How about adding some code that checks the display/package name of NewPipe and if it has been changed, let the user know (and possibly refuse to work)?

Zero3K avatar Aug 22 '17 01:08 Zero3K

Then you'd also notify the copycat and tell them "oh, I need to remove that piece of code". They're not that stupid, because they must obviously know how how to develop for Android to create realistic apps. This measure is rather pointless IMO.

TheAssassin avatar Aug 22 '17 08:08 TheAssassin

The only thing we could do is making it harder for copycats to change the email address where the but reports are send to.

theScrabi avatar Aug 22 '17 10:08 theScrabi

@theScrabi Did you feel the DCMA takedown notice, out of curiosity? It only takes a few minuts and Google reacts in a few days (I already tried with an other app) I can see that the apps haven't all been taken down.

I would like to add ~~this one~~ (MOD edit: removed) to the list made by coffemakr !

Poussinou avatar Aug 30 '17 10:08 Poussinou

Just found this app on Google Play: com.newpipestudio.newpipe They even use our screenshots.

TobiGr avatar Sep 20 '17 20:09 TobiGr

There are also this other one: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.newpipestudio.fildotube https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.newpipestudio.pelismagnet made by the same "developer"...

Poussinou avatar Sep 20 '17 21:09 Poussinou

I found them to. hilarious xD. Sometimes it's funny what kind of B*** S*** they are creating :P

theScrabi avatar Sep 20 '17 22:09 theScrabi

Better icon tho, ayyyyy :) Edit: Should we report all of them in a conduced effort? Seems my one complaint went on deaf ears.

comradekingu avatar Sep 21 '17 04:09 comradekingu

I know that problem. Tho we should try to continue with reporting, because without punishment they might think it's ok what they do.

theScrabi avatar Sep 21 '17 05:09 theScrabi

@TeamNewPipe @theScrabi

It looks like there is another one here ! Do not forget to report :)

Poussinou avatar Sep 25 '17 10:09 Poussinou

Oe come on. Tho the icon looks nice. Can't we just steel that bock from him?

theScrabi avatar Sep 25 '17 14:09 theScrabi

Does play store will really help you in this war? Play yt in background is something quite illegal for them...

Ostefanini avatar Sep 29 '17 06:09 Ostefanini

Well I wouldn't raise, there attention to much.

theScrabi avatar Sep 29 '17 20:09 theScrabi

I found the following ones in the Play Store atm. Is there nothing we can do about them?

  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=co.at.newpipe
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.floattube.liteyoutube
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.youtubelite.audiorocket
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.newpipestudio.newpipe
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.youtubelite.videorocket
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=co.RosyBrown.newpipe
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=youtubedownloader.downloader.newtube
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.rain.audio.rocket
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.newpipestudio.fildotube
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=idev4mobile.karaoke
  • https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=idev4mobile.videotube

ghost avatar Nov 08 '17 17:11 ghost

Report them. Thats the most we can do.

theScrabi avatar Nov 09 '17 01:11 theScrabi

That guy releasing Fildo even calls himself. "New Pipeplayer" and rebranded NewPipe 3 times. ... Funny.

theScrabi avatar Nov 09 '17 01:11 theScrabi

@theScrabi Tweeting to https://twitter.com/GooglePlay may help. Those guys are pretty responsive.

anantoghosh avatar Nov 11 '17 20:11 anantoghosh

Just contact a news outlet about the nature of what is actually on the Play store. It writes itself.

comradekingu avatar Nov 11 '17 20:11 comradekingu

Someone put this on Reddit. Thanks :)

theScrabi avatar Nov 11 '17 22:11 theScrabi

Just as a side note : you may add the license to the github repository so everyone see it at the "usual place" and there is no "I don't know what I can do with GPL but it's open source". Github have a nice presentation of the current license of a repository, It won't hurt to use :)

Zykino avatar Nov 17 '17 18:11 Zykino

Well we have a license, I don't know why it's not recognized by github.

theScrabi avatar Nov 18 '17 09:11 theScrabi