Google has announced that it is testing a new method of selling subscription services with select Android developers that will allow customers to buy a subscription from the Play Store.
Google announced the Google Play Billing Library Version 3, an updated set of developer tools for processing Play Store payments and handling purchases of digital goods that coincided with the release of the Android 11 beta.
“Billing Library version 3 unlocks the ability for users to discover and purchase items outside of your app, such as across the Play store,” reads Google’s blog post.
“One example is the new frictionless subscription promo code redemption experience.”
For instance, Google imagines a situation in which a customer redeems a mobile app subscription promo code, say for a free trial, and then is automatically enrolled into a paid subscription that starts once the free trial ends.
To allow that, Google is letting developers receive and process a future payment unless the customer opts out or cancels while the trial is still active.
This all appears to be part of Google’s broader effort to support digital subscription services and to reward developers that play by the rules.
In April, Google said it would begin tightening rules around in-app subscriptions to make it easier to cancel them and to force developers to be more transparent around billing cycles, free trial periods, and other methods that could be used to scam users.
2 Comments
Glad this is happening. I really think that the Google Playstore needs some scrubbing. I subscribed for a social media app the other day and suddenly started getting multiple alerts on my payment card. I cancelled the card and had to quickly call the bank to block the transactions.
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