Americans are buying hardware they don't actually own. From living room TVs to new cars, Google has built a business model around selling you a device and then dictating what software you're allowed to run on it — and the word "sideloading" proves it.
The very fact that installing an app on a device you paid for is called "sideloading" instead of just "installing" tells you everything about how far digital property rights have collapsed. XDA Developers reported this week that Google TV owners are resorting to unofficial workarounds just to fix basic problems Google intentionally created — chiefly, the ad-soaked YouTube experience designed to nag users into paying for Premium.
The most popular sideloaded app, SmartTube, is an open-source YouTube client that blocks video advertisements and skips sponsored segments within videos. It gives users their subscriptions, viewing history, and a television-first interface without the advertising interruptions Google deliberately layers into the official app. SmartTube isn't available on the Play Store. Users have to go out of their way to install it and keep it updated through unofficial channels — all to reclaim an experience that should have been theirs from the start.
XDA also highlighted AdGuard for Android TV, necessary because some apps bypass router-level DNS blocking by using their own DNS-over-HTTPS resolvers. As XDA put it: "even my TV needs supervision." The ad blocker can't catch everything, and its effectiveness depends on how each app delivers ads and whether encrypted DNS interferes with filtering. But the appeal is straightforward — when an app insists on sneaking past your existing protections, AdGuard gives you another layer of control over hardware you already bought and paid for.
Now Google is expanding this same walled-garden playbook to your car. Engadget reports that automakers are ditching phone-mirroring systems like Android Auto in favor of native infotainment operating systems — Google Built-in and Android Automotive. GM moved away from Android Auto in 2023, and customers have responded with what Engadget described as "a mix of anger and confusion," with many suspecting the shift is "likely intended to open new revenue streams, either through subscription models or the sale of driver data, rather than provide a better driving experience."
The distinction matters. Android Automotive is an open-source stack that manufacturers can customize. Google Built-in is a licensed package of Google apps — Maps, Gemini, the Play Store — that sixteen car brands including Honda, Volvo, Chevy, and Ford have adopted. Once you're inside the Google ecosystem, they control the app store, the data flows, and the subscription upsells. Gemini is now replacing Google Assistant across those vehicle systems, tightening the integration further.
The pattern is the same whether it's your TV or your dashboard: sell the hardware, lock down the software, monetize the user. Google doesn't want you sideloading apps that bypass its ad revenue or block its trackers. That's why SmartTube lives outside the Play Store. That's why your car is becoming a subscription platform on wheels.
The question isn't whether workarounds exist — they do, for now. The question is how long Big Tech will tolerate a population that still remembers what it means to actually own something.
