Google Faces Major Flak From Entrepreneurs For Forcing Payment System On Indian Devs

Anupam Mittal, the founder of Shaadi.com‘s parent company, has revealed that Google is mandating Indian app developers to use its Google Play Billing System (GPBS) in territories outside India with a condition stating that if they fail to comply, their apps will be delisted from the Google Play Store within 14 days.

What Happened? Mittal made the statement in a tweet, calling it neo-colonialism and a violation of Indian laws and the Competition Commission of India’s orders.

Following a CCI order in India, Google replaced GPBS with the User Choice Billing (UCB) system. GPBS required all in-app purchases to go through Google’s payment gateway, and the company charged a 30% commission on such purchases.

From April 26, Google will implement UCB, which will make other payment options such as cards, net banking, UPI, wallets, etc available but will charge a commission of 11-26%.

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What do entrepreneurs have to say? MapmyIndia CEO Rohan Verma also expressed his concerns on Twitter after reading Mittal’s tweet, urging everyone to stand up against foreign colonial domination and the destruction of the domestic economy and indigenous rights.

Similarly, Deepak Shenoy, CEO of Capitalmind, has emphasized the importance of taking note of the fact that Google is compelling app developers to pay up to 26% commissions even when they use other billing solutions. He urges the courts to take this matter seriously, despite the fact that they have already ruled against it.

Shenoy goes on to suggest that India should consider the establishment of alternate app stores preinstalled on phones.

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