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According to Google, these new requirements aim to ensure the quality and security of submitted apps. However, for individual developers operating without organizational support, adhering to such requirements can pose logistical challenges and lead to production delays. To understand these challenges, in this article, we qualitatively analyze app developers\u2019 discussions of Google Play\u2019s new closed testing requirements on Reddit. Additionally, we report insights from a survey of 14 indie app developers who recently passed the requirements or are actively seeking compliance. Our results show that Google Play\u2019s closed testing requirements for indie apps are commonly perceived as discriminatory, imposing logistical and bureaucratic barriers on small-scale creators in their quest to compete in the mobile app market. Our analysis also uncovers the strategies the Android developer community has adapted to navigate such requirements. Based on our findings, we propose several guidelines to help indie app developers integrate the testing requirements into their workflow. We further suggest design strategies to mitigate the impact of such requirements on innovation, fairness, and competition in the mobile app market.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1145\/3736578","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,21]],"date-time":"2025-05-21T10:05:35Z","timestamp":1747821935000},"page":"1-21","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1145\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["No Country for Indie Developers: A Study of Google Play\u2019s Closed Testing Requirements for New Personal Developer Accounts"],"prefix":"10.1145","volume":"35","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-7425-4445","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Grishma","family":"Shrestha","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-4808-1309","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Shristi","family":"Shrestha","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8353-5286","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anas","family":"Mahmoud","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"320","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,13]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_2_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1109\/TSE.2019.2891715"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_3_2","first-page":"1218","volume-title":"Companion Proceedings of the ACM Web Conference","author":"Antelmi Alessia","year":"2023","unstructured":"Alessia Antelmi, Gennaro Cordasco, Daniele De Vinco, and Carmine Spagnuolo. 2023. 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