MOUNTAINVIEW, Calif.—Google has struck a deal that will let Spotify offer its own in-app payment option alongside Google's Android billing system, a move the search giant has resisted for years, CNet reported.
“While the change may seem minor, it could prove to be a major crack in the fortresses that Google--and Apple--have built around their massive mobile-app economies since laying the foundations for them more than a decade ago,” CNet said.
“The effect on consumers may be very small at first: A segment of Android users who want to subscribe to Spotify will be able to sign up more simply in its app and have a new choice in how to pay,” the CNet report continued. “But the change, if adopted more widely, would not only give you more control over how you pay for transactions in mobile apps. It also could disrupt dynamics that in some cases have made your in-app purchases more expensive and in other cases removed the option of an in-app purchase altogether.”
According to a blog post to developers by Sameer Samat, VP-product management with Google, "This is a significant milestone and the first on any major app store -- whether on mobile, desktop or game consoles.”
The option to use third-party payment will be rolled out more broadly in the future, the blog post added.
Spotify, in its own blog post, said that it will be able to offer its own billing option side by side with Android's in its mobile app, adding that it will also be able to "freely communicate" about discounts and promotions in the app.
Feeling the Pressure
Previously, Spotify didn't allow listeners to subscribe to its premium membership in its Android app at all; its Apple mobile app doesn't offer subscriptions, either. Spotify had pulled out of in-app payments entirely over its objections to fees and restrictions set by Google and Apple, CNet explained.
Both Google and Apple have been under pressure in the United States and Europe to open their platforms to other payments solutions.
You May Be (Actually Are) Missing Out!
Don’t forget to check your Spam/Junk email folder if you haven’t been receiving your free, popular and daily CUToday.info news headlines..
And if you haven’t yet signed up for the new email solution on which CUToday.info has partnered with ResponseGenius, you can do so here. Signing up requires less than one minute of your time.
CUToday.info has received very positive response from readers following the move to an improved provider of the daily headlines, but many also noted they did need to go to their Spam/Junk folder and mark it as safe.
The new email solution has not only improved every reader’s delivery experience, but it also features a fresh, new format that is easy to read, especially on mobile devices.
Please note and/or make your IT department or email administrator aware the emails will be coming from the domains CUTodayinfo.com and CUTodayinfoReply.com