Google Play injunction can "transform Android game economics"

• Ruling gives developers complete freedom to experiment and make their chosen payment option as immersive and native as they want, says Stash's Archie Stonehill.
• Xsolla president Chris Hewish calls move a "major shift" for developers in the US that could lead to more diversified monetisation models.

The new injunction placed on Google Play in the US this week preventing the tech giant from blocking alternative payments and implementing anti-steering measures can transform the Android games ecosystem, say executives at leading direct-to-consumer firms.

The injunction is the result of the Epic Games vs. Google case and is in effect until November 1st, 2027. It follows a ruling in the US earlier this year in another case between Epic and Apple in which a judge ruled the App Store must enable linkouts to alternative payment methods.

Both rulings mean publishers can break away from the typical 30% fee from platform holders and use alternative payment systems and their own web stores powered by service providers that typically charge fees of between 5% and 10%.

Inflection point

Speaking to PocketGamer.biz, Stash chief growth officer Archie Stonehill said Google’s new policy update implementing the court’s decision marks another inflection point for developers - one that goes far beyond just bringing Android up to the same level as iOS in the US.

“The removal of anti-steering, which enables the same link-out functionality on Android that has been supported on iOS since May, is only a small portion of the policy changes Google has been forced to adopt today,” said Stonehill.

“Far more significant is the complete overturning of Google's ability to control developers' payment and distribution choices. Developers are free to use their own native payment methods, and Google is prohibited from banning apps that don't conform with its desired payment choices.

“That has two important implications: first, developers who are still worried about iOS App Store policies have nothing to fear on Android because the policy is so unequivocal. Second, this gives developers complete freedom to experiment and make their chosen alternative payment option as immersive and native as they want.

“I fully expect this to transform Android game economics in the US, and to unlock a wave of distribution, product, and business model innovation from games teams, including those who have been cautious up until this point.”

Strong developer-play ties

Xsolla president Chris Hewish called Google’s forced move a “major shift” for mobile developers in the US.

“It empowers them to channel players into direct checkout flows and deepen their relationships with players via their own web shops,” Hewish told PocketGamer.biz. 

“For the ecosystem as a whole, we’ll likely see more diversified monetisation models, greater experimentation with bundling and subscriptions, and stronger developer-player ties. 

“Of course, this freedom comes with new responsibilities around user experience, trust and conversion optimisation, but ultimately it’s a positive move, one that could spark fresh innovation across mobile games.”

Google noted that it will share more details on business model changes “to preserve user trust and safety in the ecosystem” in the near future.

Stonehill said this could be a move by Google to minimise some of the damage done by the court’s injunction.

“They don’t have that much of a chance to get this ruling reversed so I would imagine this is a preemptive way of diminishing the incentive for developers, perhaps by introducing lower fees,” he stated.

Google previously said it would petition the US Supreme Court to grant a stay against the injunction, but there is currently no news on its progress.

The injunction is a boon for publishers and payment companies looking to shift sales to platforms with more favourable revenue shares. We previously took a look at how much revenue the world’s top publishers were driving from their direct-to-consumer strategies.