The Play Store is the main Android application store and the one that comes pre-installed on the vast majority of mobile phones sold in Europe. So when Google makes a change to the store, the consequences can be huge; This is the case of a modification which went unnoticed during the week of Google I/O, but which can cause more than one dissatisfaction.
We are talking about the cost limit of applications sold through Google Play. What most people don’t know is that Google places limits on app developers on the amount of money they can charge for their programs.
For example, There is no application that can cost less than 5 euro cents In Europe; This is the limit that Google imposes on all transactions, to avoid losing money on each of them. Of course, developers can make the app completely free, but if they want to charge something, it can’t be less than 0.05 dollars.
Likewise, there is also a limit to the maximum amount developers can charge for their apps; and this amount is now multiplied by two. The announcement was made during the last Google I/O, as part of one of the developer events, but only today Google’s support page reflects the changes.
In Europe this means that Applications can cost up to 940 dollars. Indeed, an application can cost you almost 1,000 dollars to download it, which may seem crazy (and it is), but it is useful for certain “premium” sectors.
Of course, this doesn’t mean that the price of apps will increase because of this change; the vast majority cost between 1 and 10 dollars, and having a new limit It’s not going to cost them several hundred dollars all at once.. So we shouldn’t have to worry about a general rise in prices, at least not for now and not for this reason.
The real objective of this increase is to specialized applications, of which there are not many on the Play Store but which have a very specific clientele and which have very specific requirements. For example, we are talking about professional music applications, accounting management applications for businesses or applications designed for use with special devices such as virtual reality viewers. These are apps that have a very specific niche and are willing to spend almost $1,000 for an experience tailored to their needs.
To this it must be added that There are apps that cost money, simply because they can and want to.. One of the most controversial was iVIP, which until now cost the 349 dollars that Google Play had as a limit in Europe; Officially, the app was used to obtain exclusive service in luxury restaurants and hotels, but in practice it was a way to demonstrate that the user had money saved (or was not taking not the best financial decisions). Another app called “Am I rich?” » It was more direct and did just that, showing that you were rich for paying 349 dollars.
Given that Google makes 15% of all sales made through the Play Store (30% once the app earns $1 million), the company has a clear motivation to increase the app price limit. However, this change may have disastrous consequences for users, if they are cheated or press the Buy App button without looking first in the price.
