Google removing tethering apps from Android Market?

It appears that Google has started to remove applications from the Android Market that carriers find distasteful. It is being reported by some developers that their applications, which include the ability to tether^(INFO) an Android phone to a personal computer, have been removed involuntarily.

According to the developer of WiFi Tether for Root Users, a tethering app for Android smartphones, Google is pointing to its distribution agreement when asked about the removal of the applications. Basically the distribution agreement says that Google enters into agreements with carriers, and as such the applications sold on devices working on those carriers' networks need to comply with the terms of use issued by the carriers.

The issue here, however, is how Google plans to deal with the differing terms of use that the various carriers have, once we see more than a single carrier in a given market offering Android phones. There is also the question of why users that have legitimately purchased unlocked Android phones, which Google and HTC offer, must abide by terms of service agreements from carriers that they don't necessarily have any connection with.

You can read more about the issue at Android Community. [via Android Authority]