Google has detailed its billing proposals for Android developers in the UK. The set of potential commitments includes reducing fees for app distribution and in-app purchases, and introducing an alternative, neutrally presented in-app billing system.
The proposals are part of an investigation by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) into whether Google has broken competition law by forcing app developers to use only Google Play Billing (GPB).
The changes for UK developers are similar to what’s already happening in mainland Europe: the service fee will be reduced by 4% if Google Play Billing is a payment option, and by 3% if it’s not. This means instead of paying 15% of each transaction to Google; developers will pay 11% to offer the in-house option or 12% for selecting a third-party system.
Another important mention is that Google will continue to charge 15% for recurring payments, i.e. subscriptions, and developers who have revenues of less than $1 million for the first year qualify for 10%, which would remain in virtually all the scenarios.
All interested parties are invited to discuss the commitments until 19 May. Once finalized, non-gaming apps will be the first to be phased in, followed by gaming apps, all by October 2023.
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