Tech giant, Google will now allow developers to offer users the ability to subscribe via prepaid app subscriptions that essentially provide access to an app and its services for a fixed amount of time the developer sets. The users would then be capable to purchase top-ups in the app when their prepaid app subscriptions ran out and they had the funds to continue. Google stated that the new prepaid app subscriptions would make sense in regions where pay-as-you-go cellular plans are standard.
The New Prepaid App Subscriptions Will Boost Developer’s Earnings
Furthermore, in those markets, consumers are already used to the prepaid model, so extending it to apps could help to boost developers’ subscription earnings. However, the latest subscriptions plan could also help to target other use cases as well — like subscription-adverse customers who are hesitant to get shut into ongoing charges and who want more control over when and how much they’re spending on their mobile apps.
In addition to the new prepaid app subscriptions, Google announced expanded pricing options with the rollout of “ultra-low” price points to reach users in emerging markets. Last March, Google had lowered the minimum price limit for products in more than 20 markets across Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific, allowing developers to drop prices down to as low as 10 to 30 cents (USD).
Developers Now Can Lower Prices to As Low as 5 U.S. Cents
At the time, the firm described these “sub-dollar prices” would let developers reach new potential customers by adjusting pricing to “better reflect local purchasing power and demand.” Now, Google says developers can lower prices to as low as 5 U.S. cents. This would enable developers to also handle local sales and promotions and support various micro-transactions, like in-app tipping. While these changes will help to better target Android app users in emerging markets, Google made other improvements to app subscriptions, as well.
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