Can't believe I am doing a thread on Google and changes in the playstore "rules" almost a month after I did one on Apple! A lot has already been written and spoken about the "Google tax" by folks across media and tech, nonetheless my notes and thoughts on the topic

Google announced changes in their billing policy to enforce apps selling digital goods to only use Google Play billing services to be more specific. In that change, they also included new definitions of digital goods - Video, Music, Fitness classes, Dating in that list.(1/n)

Look closely at the list to see who they are taking on here - Netflix, Spotify, Match Group (Tinder) But, they don't seem to be as up in arms as much as the Indian ecosystem and protesting it as vocally as we are (or maybe I am missing that news). I wonder why? (2/n)

Possibly because they are already used to the world where the only other comparable app store is already doing this - Apple (!)? India is a 95%+ Android-driven ecosystem and hence this means a very interesting shake-up for everyone (3/n)

Also btw, most of these folks do their billing and subscription entirely outside the AppStore to make sure there is no tax. Clunky user experience, but worth the extra $$ (30%). Remember the Hey controversy, anyone? They got users to subscribe on web and use the app later (4/n)

I also think not enough is being spoken about the lack of options on the payment gateway. Cashbacks exclusively linked to unique payment options as a growth hack is a thing in our ecosystem (PhonePe, Paytm etc). How does that change with the freedom being taken away? (5/n)

And the elephant in the room - Google Pay! Is India the only market where Google Pay operates at scale? How does this conflict play for/against this decision? A strong reason to push back with anti-trust/monopoly being a theme across the world with Google at the center of it(6/n)

Now, coming back to what I think (I speculate rather) is the origin of this. Epic Games strikes once again! They sued both companies, launched discounts on their app outside of the default billing options etc. Btw, all this after raising ~$2B in funding :). (7/n)

Google's response to this honestly is great, "Hey, we are better than Apple!" :). They now say that Android 12 will support independent app stores better and they call out that OEMs have their own stores and that they give users the choice (unlike Apple) (8/n)

I hate to say this, but I think Google isn't entirely at fault here. After all, they provided the distribution, they built a fairly neutral app store that helps apps benefit from an organic loop/algorithm and they invested lot in building this and they need to make money (9/n)

To draw a parallel to the physical world - You pay a cut to any store that sells your goods on every purchase. So, why should it be any different here? It is unfortunate that there are only 2 meaningful digital retailers - but that's also because it costs so much to build!(10/n)

The argument that 30% is too high, especially in a market like India is a fair one and one that Google will hopefully hear folks out on. But to say that they should compare themselves to a payment gateway, slightly harsh and discounting all the other "goodness" they add (11/n)

Now, as far as a "Made in India" Appstore is concerned. How do you think they will make money if they don't "Tax" you? They will show Ads, promote apps and more of them and without necessarily distinguishing them to the not so sophisticated users of "Bharat" (12/n)

Who do you think that will hurt? The smaller developers, the ones who can't invest in marketing and ads as much as the behemoths. Need to say this again - don't discount the platform that playstore is and the "pseudo" neutrality they bring in (13/n)

Curious to hear from everyone who is outside the playstore today - Dream11, MPL, Real money gaming folks. Are you paying extra for user acquisition because you aren't on the playstore and missing out on that loop? If not, maybe I am giving the play store too much credit. (14/n)

I am not stating that any of the appstores today are doing this - Be it Indus or Samsung or Xiaomi. But, realise that all of them also need to make money at some point, changes will come in once they grow. They will invest today, but they will recoup later as well (15/n)

I agree that it is unfortunate that Google launches these policies without any consultation and we are left scrambling, but hopefully some of this effort we are seeing result in changes. Alternatively, subscription costs will go up or user experience will change for worse (16/n)

Again, I am not an app developer, but an observer of the ecosystem and hence some of my reads are wrong. I am happy to hear from folks and learn. Definitely, think there is a lot at stake and hence possibly some outrage is justified. If you have gotten so far, thanks for reading!

More detailed reads on actual updates by Google and other stuff on Epic Games - Appstore battle here/ Fin!

https://android-developers.googleblog.com/2020/09/listening-to-developer-feedback-to.html?m=1

https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/9992660

https://venturebeat.com/2020/09/28/google-epic-response-android-12-app-stores/ https://venturebeat.com/2020/08/14/the-deanbeat-epic-games-vs-apple-google-is-a-shot-heard-around-the-world-or-a-misfire/

Oh btw - usual disclaimers. Personal opinion, please don't drag my employer into this and make my life hell :).