Overview
- Google began a gradual rollout on March 1 that places visible notices on affected listings and can reduce an app’s presence in Play Store recommendations.
- The warning shown to shoppers reads: “This app may use more battery than expected due to high background activity.”
- Google treats apps as problematic when non‑exempt partial wake locks exceed two hours while the screen is off in more than 5% of user sessions over the past 28 days.
- Use cases with clear user benefit do not count toward violations, including audio playback, location services, and user‑initiated data transfers.
- Google is directing developers to Android Vitals and debugging tools, and a WHOOP case study reports cutting excessive wake‑lock sessions from 15% to under 1% within 30 days after a targeted fix.