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I'm developing an Android app, in two different versions: free and paid.

The free version is a stand-alone app, working on its own on the user device. Users can store their data and access it within the app.

The paid version can also connect to a server and synchronize the user data with an external server. The user can also access its data on the server itself via another website, totally unrelated to the Android app.

Do I have to use Google Play's in-app billing service to unlock the paid version, if the website and the server are not dependent on the app and can be accessed from a desktop browser?

What the paid version is offering is a synchronization mechanism between the app itself and the website.

To clarify even further:

Users can consume their own digital contents (their data) outside the app (i.e. on the website) and theoretically even ignore the app completely and still have the full service (they can generate such data on the website and consume it on the website). By ignoring the app, what they are missing is just the availability of their own data on the device.

My app will not redirect the user to an external payment processor, the payment will be made solely from the website.

Gianluca Ghettini
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1 Answers1

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Developers offering products within a game downloaded on Google Play or providing access to game content must use Google Play In-app Billing as the method of payment.

Developers offering products within another category of app downloaded on Google Play must use Google Play In-app Billing as the method of payment, except for the following cases:

  • Payment is solely for physical products
  • Payment is for digital content that may be consumed outside of the app itself (e.g. songs that can be played on other music players)

So, in your case, the answer is probably that you must use Google billing.

https://play.google.com/intl/en/about/monetization-ads/

Using external payments processor on Android for SaaS instead of Google Play In-app Billing

Michael Chourdakis
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  • thank you, the answer is "no" as in "I don't have to use Google Play's in-app billing service"?. Is that correct? – Gianluca Ghettini Jan 28 '19 at 16:30
  • I edited it to clarify, you must use the billing API. – Michael Chourdakis Jan 28 '19 at 16:31
  • But users can consume their own digital contents (their data) outside the app (i.e. on the website) and theoretically even ignore the app completely and still have the full service (they can generate such data on the website and consume it on the website). By ignoring the app, what they are missing is just the availability of their own data on the device – Gianluca Ghettini Jan 28 '19 at 16:36
  • It's a bit dangerous to speculate on what Google means exactly, people have been banned for using external billing in not so clear cases. You may want to ask them directly though, if you find a way to reach them. – Michael Chourdakis Jan 28 '19 at 16:41