Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., said it will let Spotify Technology SA use its own payment system in its Android app as part of a new trial programme aimed at alleviating app makers' worries about excessive costs and alleged anti-competitive activity.
In the coming months, users who download Spotify through the Google Play Store will be given the option of paying via Spotify's payment system or Google Play Billing in various regions.
A select number of participating developers, beginning with Spotify, will be able to provide an alternative billing option in addition to Google Play's billing system in their applications as part of the experiment.
Last year, Google announced it would enable developers in South Korea to use a second payment method in addition to its own, citing new competition legislation. Spotify claimed the Google trial was part of a "multi-year agreement," but didn't elaborate.
App developers who offer digital items, such as Spotify, have long grumbled about having to utilise the Play Store and Apple Inc.'s App Store's official payment methods.
Developers complain that Google and Apple take up to 30% of each payment as a charge, which they believe is excessive. Both have reduced costs in a variety of situations, claiming that they are necessary to fund a safe and secure mobile ecosystem. In the new experiment, Google did not define the cost it will charge.