Today was the deadline for Google to reveal how it is complying with Judge James Donato’s order to open Android to third-party app stores, stop illegally linking its Google Play Billing system to its app store, and let developers link to ways to download their apps outside the Play Store in the US.
But Google doesn’t just let app developers do things how and when they want. The company has quietly updated its support pages with a January 28 deadline to sign up for specific Google programs for “alternative billing” And “external content links” – and these programs will come with large alternative fees of their own, assuming Judge Donato doesn’t opt for Epic and Google’s proposed settlement.
While Google isn’t charging fees yet, Google says it will charge developers $2.85 for every app and $3.65 for every game a user installs within 24 hours of clicking a link that takes you outside of Google’s app store to download it outside of Google’s ecosystem.
Additionally, a 20 percent discount is required on all in-app purchases and 10 percent on all auto-renewed subscriptions. Apps must still be submitted to Google for review, use a Google API to track them, and developers must report all transactions (including $0 free trials) if they want to participate.
Meanwhile, developers who want to offer their own billing solutions will only get a 5 percent discount on Google’s current fees, making it probably not worth trying alternative billing at all. Google charges 25 percent for in-app purchases and 10 percent for auto-renewing subscriptions; developers must integrate a Google API to track it and report all transactions within 24 hours.
The company will cap some of these fees at 10 percent of a developer’s first $1 million in revenue, making things a little easier for small developers, but perhaps not easier than it currently is. Google already offers a similar 15 percent limit, so this is also a 5 percent discount.
How will Judge James Donato respond? When Apple told Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, it would require a 27 percent fee for parallel external payments Epic vs. Apple In this case, she ruled that Apple was in contempt of court, and an appeals court backed that decision a few days ago. However, the appeals court did suggest that Apple might be able to collect compensation, writing:
Apple should be able to charge a commission on linked purchases based on the costs actually and reasonably necessary to coordinate external links for linked purchases, but no more.
Google currently claims that “the costs associated with the External Content Linking Program reflect the value provided by Android and Play and support our continued investments in Android and Play.”
But Google also says it won’t collect any fees yet, writing:
Google plans to charge service fees in the future on successful transactions and downloads completed through external content links. However, Google does not currently assess these charges and therefore does not require developers in this program to report these transactions or downloads to Google.
In their joint progress report today, Epic and Google’s lawyers write that while Epic agrees to the January 28 deadline and other requirements, “Epic has indicated that it opposes the service charges that Google has announced it will implement in the future and that Epic will challenge these charges if they become effective.”
Of course, none of this will happen if Judge Donato instead accepts Google and Epic’s proposed settlement, which would apply generally worldwide (rather than just in the US) and come with lower standard transaction fees.
But Google said the settlement would also include fees for alternative billing and third-party app downloads, and Judge Donato appeared skeptical of the settlement in November. He has ordered an evidentiary hearing on January 22 before making a decision.
Because Google’s support pages seem fluid Epic vs. Google continues, we have archived copies of their current text below.
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