Breaking Up with Google Play: Why Conversations Is Now Free

Conversations, a federated messaging app for Android, is becoming free after over a decade as a paid app on Google Play Store. The developer, who has sustainably funded the project since 2014 through Play Store revenue, consulting, and grants, is removing it from Google Play due to deteriorating support, unexplained app rejections, removals, and increasingly long review times. The shift to free reflects both frustration with Google's platform policies and a changing business model supported by alternative revenue sources.