Good news for developers who sell subscriptions through their apps on the Play Store: Google announced that it will cut its commission in half starting next year. This means that the withholding applied by the Mountain View company will go from 30% to 15% .
Let's remember that Google had already implemented a similar measure last March; However, it only impacted on the first million that was billed for selling an app, or for in-app purchases. In terms of subscriptions, Google's commission was already down to 15%, but only when developers got users to keep it active for 12 consecutive months .
The reduction announced today implies an extension of this benefit. From January 1, 2022, the share that Google will charge for all subscriptions sold through the Play Store will be 15%. This means that it will be applied from the first day , so it will no longer be necessary to comply with the one-year period mentioned above.
According to Californians, the move is intended to provide a more encouraging outlook for developers using a subscription-based business model. Google indicates that the loss of customers prevented many companies from accessing the Play Store benefit as previously stipulated, since they could not meet the requirement of having recurring subscribers.
Google reduces Play Store commissions to incentivize developers
Photo by Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash In addition to lowering the commission charged for subscriptions in the Play Store, Google reported another novelty for developers. Last June, the company announced Play Media Experience, a program aimed at promoting the development of e-book, audio and video apps for Wear OS, Android Auto and Google TV; and for this it already offered to reduce its commission to 15%.
What Google now also proposes is that those who develop apps to read electronic books or to listen to music via streaming, and who are already part of the Play Media Experience, can apply an even greater reduction. Those who are approved could pay just a 10% commission .
Logically, this new Google proposal is not based solely on a gesture of goodwill . Recall that those from Mountain View are under the scrutiny of regulators for their dealings with the Play Store. The case of Epic Games and Fortnite is the most notorious for the ramifications it has had, but also the recent determination of South Korea that forces Google and Apple to report on alternative means of payment in their online stores.
