Google Play Store and Youtube will stop new recurring subscriptions thanks to RBI

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Navjot Singh

Navjot Singh

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Google halts recurring payment options on Play Store

Google will stop on-boarding new recurring payment customers on its Android Play Store. It told developers to remove free trials and introductory pricing from their apps.
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Google will stop on-boarding new recurring payment customers on its Android Play Store, as the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) new recurring payment rules come into effect from September this year. In an email to developers, Google said that free trials and introductory pricing should be removed from apps and from any user communication “until the ecosystem challenges are addressed.”

Back in August 2019, the RBI issued a new framework for managing auto-debit or recurring transactions that are created through electronic mandates or e-mandates.

In its email, Google said that will also temporarily suspend free trials and introductory pricing for users in India. Lump-sum payment options (1 month or 12 months) for subscriptions will continue to be available on the Play Store, but customers cannot can’t sign up for a free trial or take advantage of introductory pricing without also signing up for an auto-debit subscription. The new payment policy will come into effect from May onward, Google said.
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A step in right direction
 
It's not stupid directions, it has been very misused feature by bad apps and yeah targets is not on you, you won't fall prey to such recurring pay systems, these bad apps target old people/technically not so adept people and kids.

I understand the nuisance this supposedly stupid regulation might cause for you as you are someone who knows tech enough to make informed decision.
Well as once said : cost of anarchy

Everybody has to pay the price for the bad deeds done by few.
 
I don't think it's tough for merchants, at least large ones, to share customer payment data via VISA/ Mastercard with the banks. It will be convenient for customers to manage all the standing instructions in their bank app, listed in one place. UPI also supports this, but banks don't.
 
It looks like Youtube has stopped offering trials, student and family plans as well. Individual plans are only offered in pre-paid mode with 1 and 3-month top-ups. Great fucking JOB.
 

RBI wants only pre-debit notification and consent atleast 24 hrs before the payment. It's not that hard to implement already seen horror stories in reddit unable to cancel subscriptions of newyork times where one need to call them and beg them to cancel so RBI's way is better
 
Do you want the entire world to bend to RBI's terms? Coz nobody is interested in it. Everyone is switching off subscriptions for Indians. Why would NYT bother complying? Google has stopped subscriptions on all their products and they are in India. For few bad actors, everyone has to suffer now.
 
@Navjot Singh if the entire world can bend to europe's gdpr and provide dedicated cancel button for european subcribers then the world can bent to RBI's terms also
 
You are comparing EU's GDPR to RBI's auto-subscription mandate rule? I am pretty sure a lot more people get scammed out of their money through UPI and Aadhar but yes, cancel auto-subscription payments first.

We are a third-world country. A country that has done nothing but made the job of every company even planning to set foot here extremely difficult. Check Musk's reply on Twitter when someone asked him why isn't Tesla coming here. The only reason companies are doing business here is because of our population. Otherwise, nobody would bother entering our market anymore. India has nothing to offer to anyone. Nor to a common man and nor to any company willing to do business.
 
If Google and whatsapp can launch their own upi platform, Uber and play store can accept payments via UPI, they can surely implement the RBI mandate. For others, if VISA and MC agrees to pass on data on recurring transactions to banks, this can be done.

I booked the GRE and it is an international merchant accepting payment in USD. Still it went through only after an OTP. I guess they also have tweaked their website to abide by RBI.
 

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