Google Postpones 30 Percent In-App Purchase Policy Till September 2021

Tech giant Google has decided to further delay its in-app purchase policy. The development comes in the backdrop backlash the company was facing from several quarters. The decision has come as a huge relief for developers who were afraid of losing revenue because of the new policy. Google had announced plans to charge a 30 percent commission from developers. The policy was likely to come into effect from January next year. But the company has now pushed it to September. Google’s decision to postpone the decision as it faced strong flak from developers, especially the South Korean app developers. Like Apple, Google also has the policy to charge a 30 percent commission for in-app purchases made through the Play Store.

According to Google, it was planning to collect the commission through its billing system. Although a similar policy was in place for a long, several apps managed to bypass the rule using other methods. Several apps added a feature to allow users to make payments directly via credit card. This caused revenue loss to the search engine giant. Google then announced to make the rule strict to collect the commission. Google had previously said that the new policy will have no impact on the majority of developers. It then noted that nearly 97 percent of them sell their products already use the Play Store’s billing system.

According to Google’s claim, the policy would affect only two percent of South Korean app developers. This evoked a sharp response from the Korean app developers. Following Google’s decision, a group of South Korean lawmakers urged the tech giant to lower its commission just like Apple. The group alleged that the commission would affect the earning of the local developers. Notably, Apple recently unveiled a program that seeks to slash the charge by half. The decision will benefit the small businesses having a turnover of USD one million. The new policy will come into effect from January 1, 2021. Apple too was facing severe criticism from developers for its policy of collecting 30 percent commission for in-app purchases.