In-app billing is one of the best ways for app developers to make profit on their applications. It gives buyers a chance to try to the app and then purchase the pieces of content they want after the initial download. Well, in-app billing has just been hit with a huge update that should allow developers to create a better experience for buyers while making themselves some more money.
The first part of the update is designed to make it easier for developers write, debug, and maintain their apps, which should create better app experiences for us all. The Android Developers Blog claims that implementation that used to require several hundred lines of code can now be done in about 50 lines. In-app billing 3 also improves the overall architecture which should result in less lost sales.
There is plenty of other good stuff that should help developers make in-app billing smoother. It adds local caching for faster performance. Developers can also query for product information. They have also made it easier to implement overall, which should have us seeing more apps using the feature, which could be good or bad depending on how developers use it.
The Developers Blog also talked about adding subscriptions down the line. This should open a slew of new options for developers such as publication and game subscriptions that were not available before. They did not say when this option would arrive, but hopefully they drop it soon.
[via Android Developers Blog]
