As it is wont to do, Google is once again following Apple by reducing the fee it charges developers that sell digital goods and services through its derivative “Google Play” app store from 30% to 15% on the first $1 million developers earn.
Apple in November announced a new App Store Small Business Program to benefit the vast majority of developers who sell digital goods and services on the App Store, providing them with a reduced commission on paid apps and in-app purchases. Developers can qualify for the program and a reduced 15% commission if they earned up to $1 million in proceeds during the previous calendar year.
Tripp Mickle and Sarah E. Needleman for The Wall Street Journal:
By reducing its take of app sales, Google estimates that 99% of developers would see their fees cut in half…
Were the reduction implemented last year, it would have lowered Google’s take of Play store sales of $11.6 billion by an estimated $585 million, according to Sensor Tower, an app-industry research firm. Its parent company Alphabet reported $182.53 billion in revenue last year, mostly from advertising…
Roughly $38.6 billion was spent in the Play store last year, while the App Store generated $72.3 billion, according to Sensor Tower…
A spokeswoman for Epic said Google’s move doesn’t address the root of its beef with the company. “Whether it’s 15% or 30%, for apps obtained through the Google Play store, developers are forced to use Google’s in-app payment services,” she said.
MacDailyNews Take: Again, Epic Games et al. wants to enjoy all of the benefits of Apple’s App Store, including access to well over one billion of the world’s most affluent users for free. They even want free access to those who settle for inferior fake iPhones peddled by South Korean dishwasher makers and the like. In both cases, that’s illogical, unfair, and, basically, theft.
Except, on Android, users and developers aren’t required to use the Play Store at all.
Almost all developers do though. The ones that don’t are far more likely to be pirated versions of those that do. And, for years, people have been warned that the chance of getting malware from those stores is much greater.
It’s good they did, but on Apps they aren’t under anti-trust pressure. Apple is.
Actually, they are.
There is a difference though. Apple requires developers who go over $1 million a year to pay 30% on all sales, while Google allows the 15% to remain for sales below, while 30% then applies for sales above $1 million.
It’s likely that Apple will, at some point, follow that too.
Seriously, it’s not that Google is copying Apple here. It’s just intelligent business practice. Google might have seen the possibility of some small developers moving to Apple, or adding Apple. So by cutting payments, that could make them think twice about it.