User Choice Billing is now available to Android app developers through the Google Play Store
With the debut of this new trial program, Android app developers can now accept payments through their own billing systems, bypassing Google’s own services. Users will be able to select whether they want to be billed through Google Play or the developer’s preferred system, and developers from all over the world may now sign up for the program. As the first confirmed User Choice Billing partner, Spotify is at the forefront of this movement.
Developers of non-game Android apps can sign up for the initiative to provide users with a paying option other than Google Play. Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) compliance, customer support for the alternate charging mechanism, and notification to Google of changes to app enrollment preferences are all requirements.
Developers are still responsible for service expenses even if users choose the other payment option, however the rebate is reduced to 4%. Google claims that it needs the money from the fees in order to fund “continued investments throughout Android and Google Play.”
EAA countries (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, and Sweden) will be used to test the pilot program.
When Apple and Google were accused of anti-competitive activity in regards to App Store collection fees, it prompted the introduction of User Choice Billing. Apple and Google were ordered by South Korean law to introduce new payment methods.
