Facebook considers launching its own Android app store: report

Facebook is considering launching its own Android app store to compete with Google Play, according to a report by The Information. Though the social networking giant had no plans to split with Google, it was considering launching a separate app store for Android devices that did not currently have Google Play installed, the report said.

The vast majority of the Android market, is currently controlled by Google, but there are a number of notable exceptions - Chinese handset manufacturers had long relied on their own or third-party app stores since Google did not operate in mainland China.

There were also third-party Android distributions in other parts of Asia, Russia and other developing countries that did not use Google's official app store.

According to commentators, Facebook could offer these companies an alternative to Google Play. This would give their platforms added credibility a a revenue share for any paid apps.

This would not be the first app store run by Facebook, as it already operates the Oculus app store on select Samsung phones in conjunction with its Gear VR headset.

Meanwhile, reports say Apple iPhone users had been experiencing hiccups from the iOS App Store. Users had complained that the App Store was not showing app updates for their installed applications. There had also been complaints that it was sometimes unresponsive or sluggish.

One developer, Zachary Drayer said on Twitter that if an item on the tab bar below was tapped 10 times, the App Store would refresh its app cache.

Once the refresh was complete, the proper app updates and info would be finally displayed. According to experts, it seemed that the problem stemmed from the cache issue.

Users could also choose to tap Updates, Search, Explore, Top Charts and Favorites and after  tapping one item consecutively 10 times, the screen would go blank for a few seconds which was a sign that the App Store was resetting its cache.