Currently the apps which offer in-app purchases are shown as ‘free’ in Google Play Store. Now Google has announced that it will no longer show the apps, which offer the in-app purchases, as ‘free’. This step has been taken to make consumer guidance better when downloading apps. There are no words about what will be shown instead of ‘free’ when downloading such apps. Changes are being made in Play Store and they will take effect by the end of September.
It means that such apps will no longer be shown as free which offer in-app purchases. Other free apps with ads will still be shown free and other paid apps will be shown as normal.
“These include not using the word “free” at all when games contain in-app purchases, developing targeted guidelines for its app developers to prevent direct exhortation to children as defined under EU law and time-framed measures to help monitor apparent breaches of EU consumer laws. It has also adapted its default settings, so that payments are authorized prior to every in-app purchase, unless the consumer actively chooses to modify these settings.”