yeah exactly

i was wondering the same thing… im in the eu and recently updated whatsapp and it says you can chat using different “third party apps” i saw that there are just 2 available atm , but are in beta or something and ask you for the email…

they talk about alternative stores as well but fail to do a great reporting on the issue … a alternative appstore that need’s google approve it’s simply not a real alternative.

From https://keepandroidopen.org/ In August 2025, Google announced ↗ that as of September 2026, it will no longer be possible to develop apps for the Android platform without first registering centrally with Google. This registration will involve:

• Paying a fee to Google
• Agreeing to Google’s Terms and Conditions
• Providing government identification
• Uploading evidence of the developer’s private signing key
• Listing all current and future application identifiers