Alphabet Inc.’s Google will begin letting some apps bill users directly as an alternative to paying through Google, a concession amid mounting antitrust concerns over app store fees.
The new system, which Google is framing as an experiment, starts with streaming giant Spotify Technology SA. If a user chooses to pay Spotify directly instead of using Google’s billing system, Spotify won’t have to give Google its entire 15% fee, according to a person familiar with the matter. A Google spokesperson said the company hasn’t sorted out the financial terms yet.
In 2021, consumers spent $133 billion on apps, two-thirds of it on Apple’s platform, according to Sensor Tower. Across the app’s lifetime, Spotify has been installed nearly 1 billion times from the Google Play store, Sensor Tower added.
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