The British antitrust regulator “Competition and Markets Authority” (CMA) said today that Google has proposed to allow developers to use third-party payment options in the Google Play app store.
In June last year, the British CMA launched an antitrust investigation into Google because Google required app developers to use Google’s own payment system for in-app purchases. The CMA believes that Google’s restrictive behaviour hinders fair competition and also harms the interests of consumers.
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The CMA said today that Google has given a new proposal to address this concern, allowing app developers to provide different payment options and allowing users to choose between third-party payment systems and Google Play’s payment system.
In this regard, Ann Pope, senior director of antitrust at the CMA, said: “It is great to see that our investigation has led to Google giving thousands of app developers the freedom of in-app payments. But at the same time, we need to ensure that this Promises pay off in practice.”
To this end, the CMA is assessing and consulting on whether Google’s new proposal is adequate until May 19. Google said it will continue to listen to feedback and continue to invest in helping developers thrive in Google Play.
According to the CMA, Google Play accounts for more than 90% of all app downloads to Android devices in the UK. In addition to the UK, Google also allows some developers in the EU to use third-party payment systems to comply with the EU’s Digital Market Act.
