Google: Being Responsible
July 29, 2019
Individual states have been legalizing or decriminalizing marijuana left and right, but the federal government still considers it an illegal substance. That is why, according to 9to5Google, “Google Immediately Bars All Marijuana Delivery Apps from the Play Store.” Google wouldn’t want to run afoul of the Feds, now would it? Reporter Damien Wilde writes:
“The updated policy now states that applications that help users buy or allow users to order marijuana products will now be removed. Here is the updated marijuana policy, as per the Play Store developer guidelines:
‘Here are some examples of common violations:
‘Allowing users to order marijuana through an in-app shopping cart feature.
‘Assisting users in arranging delivery or pick up of marijuana.
‘Facilitating the sale of products containing THC.’
“In a statement to Android Police, Google stated that applications like the popular Eaze and Weedmaps will only need to remove the shopping cart flow from within their applications to comply with the new rules. These apps simply need to move the shopping cart flow outside of the app itself to be compliant with this new policy. We’ve been in contact with many of the developers and are working with them to answer any technical questions and help them implement the changes without customer disruption.”
An update to the article reports Eaze has complied, requiring users to navigate to its own website to make a purchase. We imagine Weedmaps will soon follow, reducing both apps to window-shopping platforms. What, then, is the point? Perhaps they anticipate a time when federal law catches up to states’ decisions.
Cynthia Murrell, July 29, 2019
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