Google announced today that it is expanding the user choice billing program for the Play Store — which allows users to choose alternative payment systems for in‑app purchases — in India, Australia, Indonesia, Japan and the European Economic Area. The company is calling all non‑gaming developers worldwide to apply for this program and if they meet the requirements, they can use third‑party payment systems in the aforementioned regions.
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Google introduced a similar policy for developers and users who don’t play games in the EEA in July. The new guidelines are an extension of that. The company gave a 3% discount on fees for developers using third-party billing in the EEA. In the new announcement, the company said that “reasonable service fees will continue to apply,” but didn’t provide any numbers. The company said it would reveal more details about this in the coming weeks and months.
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These pieces of information are critical for many developers, as the cut percentage from Google will determine whether they want to go through the hassle of changing payment processors.
While this new expansion includes some of Android's biggest markets, such as India and Indonesia, it ignores the U.S. market, where lawmakers are exploring rules aimed at curbing Apple and Google's monopoly on app stores . In July, the company agreed to a $90 million settlement with U.S. -based developers over the Play Store fees issue.
" Android has always been a uniquely open operating system , and we continue to evolve our platform and increase the choices available to developers and users, while maintaining ability to invest in the ecosystem. We'll share more in the coming months as we continue to build and iterate with our pilot partners," a Google spokesperson said in a statement.
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Google already offers a third-party payment system on the Play Store for users based in South Korea, after the country passed a law that prohibited companies from imposing a payment system for in-app purchases. However, the company is offering a 4% discount on developer fees in South Korea.
Information source: techcrunch.com
