When it comes to the Google Play store developers have an abundance of tools and resources for financial means. The most recent that has come out is subscriptions, which allow a user to pay a “monthly fee” for a certain amount of “microtransaction content.” I”m impressed with the wealth of services and tools Google provides for consumers and developers. They have always impressed me even for those services or tools I don’t use.
The most newly updated part to subscriptions is the ability to allow the developers to give out free trial subscriptions. That is pretty nifty to me! I mean I am the type of person who likes to test and use apps to see which one best fits my needs, and let me tell me I can be a bit high maintenance when it comes to my phone and apps, not only do they have to work good, but they have to look good. When I say look good I really mean look good. If it has some cheesy widget or no widget at all, it’s less likely I will use the app no matter the rating or comments.
So, what will these trial subscriptions do for the Android world? It means those lovely 7 day trials we get on games or software programs, will now be available for Android apps. However, you will need to “purchase” a regular subscription which will require a “valid form of payment.” A credit card, or debit card will be sufficient, so those who are not comfortable with such an idea, this may not be as exciting.
Even though you have what is called a “full subscription” you wouldn’t be charged until the free trial was up, at which point you may cancel the subscription at any given time prior with no obligations. There will be a difference with the cancellation process with the “trial” periods subscriptions. With a normal subscription when you cancel you are able to get services until the end date of the subscription. With the trial subscriptions, once you cancel the subscription and services is ended immediately.
Developers may think that this is a bad idea and may hurt their pocketbooks, but this new feature shouldn’t affect them really at all. It should actually help them as it will give users a longer opportunity to test their application or software. Let’s face it, 15 minutes is not a sufficient time to really test an app now is it?
What does the Android community think? I’d really like to hear from developers on the matter. Is this a great feature, or do you think it was a bad move on Google’s part?
Sources: Android Central / Web Pro News