Google has decided to allow Match Group and Bandcamp to continue using their own payment methods instead of requiring them to implement the Google Play Store billing system.
The company said earlier this year that Android apps distributed through the Play Store would have to use Google’s billing system by June 1. Some companies, including Barnes & Noble and Amazon, responded by completely removing purchases from their Android apps.
Bandcamp’s new parent company, Epic Games, and Match Group have taken a different approach. The companies separately challenged Google’s decision in court – Epic Games (Opens in New Window) on April 28 and Match Group (Opens in New Window) on May 9 – so they can continue to use their existing payment systems.
The companies announced on May 20 that they had reached an agreement to do just that.
“According to a court-sponsored agreement,” said Bandcamp CEO Ethan Diamond (opens in a new window), “Bandcamp will continue to operate using our existing Android device payment system.”
But there’s a catch: Bandcamp will have to “put 10% of the revenue generated from digital sales of Android devices into escrow until Epic’s ongoing lawsuit against Google is resolved,” Diamond said, and the company will bear those costs instead of transfers them. to everybody.
Google’s agreement with the Match Group seems broader. Match Group said (Opens in new window) that:
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Match Group apps will not be rejected or removed from the Google Play Store because they offer alternatives to Google Play Billing.
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Google will approve updates to the Match Group app, which offer alternatives to Google Play Billing, while continuing to provide users with choices and options they are used to.
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Google will work – in good faith – to address the shortcomings of Google Play Billing outlined HERE (Opens in new window). When Google addresses these issues, Match Group applications that do not currently offer Google Play Billing will test Google’s system on their platforms in good faith, along with current payment systems.
But this agreement comes with a similar clause. “As part of this agreement, Match Group plans to put up to $ 40 million in an escrow account,” the company said, “instead of paying Google directly for billing transactions that take place on Android outside of Google Play Billing.”
All this means that Match Group and Bandcamp have scored a temporary victory at best. It is now up to the courts to decide whether Google will be allowed to force these companies – and other Android software vendors – to use their billing system instead of maintaining their own.
Google did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
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