Google takes action against 10 Indian Apps for non payment of its store money.

Digital News Guru Tech Desk: Google began removing the apps of 10 companies in India on Friday, including some popular matrimony apps such as Bharat Matrimony, in a dispute over service fee payments, potentially sparking a showdown with startup firms.

Though Google did not name the companies or the apps, it accused them of not paying for the “immense value” they receive on Google Play. This, according to Google, has allowed this small group of developers to get differential treatment, creating an “uneven playing field across the ecosystem”, the company said in a blog post.

Google did not name the companies

“For an extended period of time, 10 companies, including many well-established ones, have chosen to not pay for the immense value they receive on Google Play by securing interim protections from court,” Google said in a blog post.

Google calls out Indian startups

In a recent blogpost, Google highlighted that 10 Indian companies had chosen for an extended period of time not to pay for the “immense value they receive on Google Play”, without naming any specific apps.

“For years, no court or regulator has denied Google Play’s right to charge,” the company said on Friday, adding that the Supreme Court on February 9 also “refused to interfere” with its right to do so.

The company obligates developers that want to list themselves on the Play Store to use its payment system as at least one of the options. The policy was criticized by India’s competition regulator Competition Commission of India but the company effectively was cleared to continue with its practice after two Supreme Court decisions that rejected pleas by some of the start-ups.

After giving these developers more than three years to prepare, including three weeks after the Supreme Court’s order, we are taking necessary steps to ensure our policies are applied consistently across the ecosystem, as we do for any form of policy violation globally,” Google India said in a blog post on Friday.

Response From Developers

Sanjeev Bikhchandani, founder of Info Edge, confirmed compliance with Google’s policies and timely payment of dues. However, Matrimony.com expressed concern over the potential impact of Google’s actions on the matrimony services industry.

Developers, it said, are welcome to resubmit their apps to be listed on Play by selecting one of the three billing options as part of its Payments Policy .”Today, we have over 2,00,000 Indian developers using Google Play who adhere to our policies, helping us ensure we have a safe platform; however, for an extended period of time, 10 companies, including many well-established ones, have chosen to not pay for the immense value they receive on Google Play by securing interim protections from the court,” it said.

The tech giant also said that only 3% of developers in India sell digital goods or services and therefore need to pay a service fee, the vast majority of whom pay 15 percent or less – the lowest of any major global app store. “In fact, in India, less than 60 developers on Google Play are subject to fees above 15 percent,” said Google.

While we always try to work with developers to help them through our policies and find feasible solutions, allowing this small group of developers to get differential treatment from the vast majority of developers who are paying their fair share creates an uneven playing field across the ecosystem and puts all other apps and games at a competitive disadvantage,” argued Google.

Conclusion

Google’s action against non-compliant Indian app developers underscores the importance of adherence to Play Store policies. As the situation evolves, developers must consider their compliance status and explore available options to ensure their apps remain accessible to users on the Google Play Store.

Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibilty for its content.

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