New Delhi, Mar 1 (EFE).- Tech giant Google threatened Friday to take action against ten Indian companies over non-payment of its service fee on Google Play store, amid a judicial battle that could change the financial dynamics of digital payment services.
“For an extended period of time, 10 companies, including many well-established ones, have chosen to not pay for the immense value they receive on Google Play by securing interim protections from court,” the tech platform said in a blog post.
Without revealing the names of the companies, Google said these same developers who refuse payments do “comply with payment policies of other app stores” on Android platforms.
Now, “we are taking necessary steps to ensure our policies are applied consistently across the ecosystem,” it underlined.
The measures referred to by Google, which will be applied “when necessary,” include “removal of non-compliant apps from Google Play” until developers resubmit their apps to be listed on Play by electing one of the accepted forms of billing and payment.
Several Indian companies approached the courts, denouncing the fee Google imposes on developers to market their apps on the Google Play store, considering the charges as exploitative.
While the case is listed for formal hearing before the Supreme Court on Mar. 19, the judicial authorities have refused to grant more temporary relief to the companies.
“No court or regulator has denied Google Play’s right to charge for the value and services we provide,” Google said in its statement, adding it was unfair to allow “this small group of developers to get differential treatment from the vast majority of developers who are paying their fair share.”
The apex court’s judgment could set a major precedent for the digital infrastructure economy if it rules in favor of the developers. EFE
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