> Not sure if they still do, but a couple years ago prices in app were lower than on the website. And they promoted installing it to save money.

Translation: They are able to mine your personal data more completely with an app installed vs the website which they can sell for pure profit. They promoted installing it to extract more value from you.

That's definitely a feasible explanation (and the one I would assume to be true for AliExpress).

But there is another, slightly less evil, explanation that I know at least some companies have pushed their apps because of: the thinking is that if you're on their website, there is less friction to open a new tab and search for a lower price from their competitors, than if you're in their app. Obviously it's hardly any different - opening a new app (the web browser) vs. opening a new tab in the app you're already in - but the theory is that there's a slight psychological difference.

Of course I'm not saying that trying to prevent your customers from searching for better deals is a nice thing to do. Just adding that data mining isn't the only reason for some companies to want people to use their apps.

It also all goes to the party, who are the owners of Alibaba (and every other company in China).

Should you ever need someone in a foreign country to do something for you, it's good to have as much information as possible at your disposal about them.