Google Will Charge up to $40 Per Phone in Europe Following New EU Regulations

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Published 19 Oct 2018

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Google is facing some major changes in Europe following new European Union regulations that were just confirmed, and a new report has outlined how Google plans to address the changes.

We recently heard that Google is going to need to charge Android manufacturers a fee for its suite of apps within Europe, which includes access to the Google Play Store so Android owners can download apps through the first-party storefront. But, at the time, it was not known just how much Google was going to be charging, or how the pricing would be broken down for manufacturers.

Now, The Verge has a report that states Google will be charging up to $40 per phone to device manufacturers that want to have Google’s suite of apps available on their devices. The breakdown looks like this: For phones with higher than 500ppi, the device fee will be as high as $40. For phones with a pixel-per-inch count between 400 and 500ppi, then device fee will be set at $20. If the pixel-per-inch count is below 400, then the device fee will be only $10. Phones with a low ppi count will see a device fee of around $2.50.

The pricing varies per country, with the United Kingdom, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, and Germany takin on most of the cost burden. Tablets, however, will have a different pay structure in place, but with a more level playing field across countries that sees the device fee cap out at $20.

However, Google is apparently willing to cover most or all of the licensing fees if the device manufacturers are willing to have Google Chrome and Google Search preinstalled on their devices. There is incentive there for device manufacturers, too, because beyond having the costs paid for by Google, the company won’t be paying out search revenue sharing to the companies that don’t have Chrome or Search installed.

“If the Company elects not to place the Google Chrome browser on the Application Dock for any Qualified Device(s) supplied into the EEA [European Economic Area],” the agreement reads, “Company will not be entitled to any portion of revenue generated from Google Chrome for such Qualified Device(s).”

These new fees will go into effect for devices that are activated on or after February 1, 2019.

[via The Verge]