For 5 years, Google will let developers offer an alternative in-app billing system next to Google Play (aka “User Choice Billing”)
For 5 years, Google won’t make developers offer their best prices to customers who pick Google Play and Google Play Billing
For 4 years, Google won’t make developers ship titles on Google Play at the same time as other stores and with feature parity
For 5 years, Google won’t make companies exclusively put Google Play on a phone or its homescreen
For 4 years, Google won’t stop OEMs from granting installer rights to preloaded apps
For 5 years, Google won’t require its “consent” before an OEM preloads a third-party app store
For 4 years, Google will let third-party app stores update apps without requiring user approval
For 4 years, Google will let sideloaded app stores use its APIs and “feature splits” to help install apps
For 5 years, Google will turn its two sideloading “scare screens” into a single user prompt which will read the equivalent of this agreed-upon language: “Your phone currently isn’t configured to install apps from this source. Granting this source permission to install apps could place your phone and data at risk.”
For 5 years, Google will let User Choice Billing participating developers let their users know about better pricing elsewhere and “complete transactions using the developer’s existing web-based billing solution in an embedded webview within its app.”
For 6 years, Google will “continue to allow developers to use contact information obtained outside the app or in-app (with User consent) to communicate with Users out-of-app”
For 6 years, Google will let consumption only apps (e.g. Netflix, which doesn’t let you pay on device) tell users about better prices elsewhere, without linking to an outside website — example: “Available on our website for $9.99”
For 6 years, Google “shall not prohibit developers from disclosing to Users any service or other fees associated with the Google Play or Google Play’s billing system.”
Some of the stuff doesn’t seem like it’s very desirable for the consumer. Some of it for sure seems great but I’m not really sure how much I want the OEM side loading bullshit on my phone before I get it and I’m not wild about these random companies getting extra data sharing freedom on my personal information.
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