It seems that from next week Google will get very serious to enforce the monetization policies of the Play Store, to prevent developers from continuing to break their rules as recently happened with Epic Games and Fortnite.
According to Bloomberg, Google has confirmed that it will update the Policies of the Developer Program to make its rules totally clear so as not to leave free interpretations to the developer as is currently the case with the lax rules that it currently has.
Google would clarify the new rules next week
Google Play rules have always been around, but some major developers like Netflix Inc, Spotify Technology SA, Match Group Inc, and Epic Games Inc, Play Store policies have been circumvented and Google would have been a blind eye for all this time.
It is unknown what changes Google Play will make in its policies but it seems that the company could follow in Apple’s footsteps and prevent applications from using their own payment system for subscriptions. The current rules are:
In-app purchases:
Developers offering products in a game downloaded from Google Play or providing access to its content should use Google Play Billing for In-App Purchases as a payment method.
Developers offering products in another category of application downloaded from Google Play must use Google Play Billing for In-App Purchases as a payment method, except as noted below:
- Payments made to purchase only physical products
- Payments made for acquire digital content that can be used outside of the application itself (for example, songs that can be listened to on other music players)
This last point, that of acquiring digital content that can be used from outside the application, seems to be the rule that Google could update, since it is the exception that many developers use to put their own payment methods to avoid the 30 commission. % when then its digital content cannot be used from other applications but from other devices with other operating systems.
For example, the Spotify and Netflix apps for Android link you to their own payment method to subscribe while on iOS all you can do is log in. Apple doesn’t allow apps to link to other payment methods, and Google could do the same.
As of next week we will get rid of doubts and we will know the changes. Google will publish the new rules and give developers a deadline to adapt their applications before being kicked out if they violate the rules.
Via | Bloomberg