In-App Payment Coming Soon On Android
Developers on the Android platform have been complaining about the lack of an in-app payment system. The absence of this was denying the developers some earnings unlike their counterparts at iPhone. The Inside Social Apps conference was a suitable avenue for the group manager of Android, Eric Chu to handle this issue. Chu said that the payment system was meant to launch in the last quarter of 2010 but had been delayed because most developers were busy working on their Christmas applications. This meant that Google could not get enough feedback. He however promised that the system will come in the first quarter of 2011. When the in-app billing is finally launched, it will not only use the carrier billing but will also utilize the Android Market payment system. The company has invested a lot in the carrier billing and according to Chu it is one of the lowest-friction models. None the less the company is still working on adding other methods of payment. The payment system will be designed in such a way that most of the current Android devices can be able to use. Apps that go through the Google Marketplace have to use Google’s payment system while those that are not in the system can take advantage of the much touted Android openness.












