

Why so few paid Android apps? Blame Google Checkout - ilamont
http://venturebeat.com/2009/12/25/android-apps-google/

======
DrJokepu
This is a ridiculous article. It's the same as saying that the airline
industry is having a the rough time it currently has because people have to
provide their bank account details when they book a flight as opposed to
adding the booking fee to the ISP bill. On the Android Market, of course, you
only have to provide your card details the first time you purchase something.
I can't possibly believe that having to provide some means of payment deters
any serious customer (that is, someone who's prepared to pay).

I'm an Android fan. I'd like to see Android getting better so criticism is
more than welcome but how about focusing on the real weaknesses (there are a
lot of them) as opposed to FUD and utter nonsense?

~~~
neilk
> I can't possibly believe that having to provide some means of payment deters
> any serious customer (that is, someone who's prepared to pay).

The phenomenon of users giving up somewhere after cilcking "buy" is called
"cart abandonment". Rates of 50-70% are common.

<http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007156>

I think you are under the impression that consumers make irrevocable buying
decisions after careful consideration, and then see the process through to the
end. That isn't even true of major purchases like cars or homes, let alone
lifestyle purchases like smartphone apps. _Anything_ can deter that sort of
purchase, even the inconvenience of getting up to find the credit card.

The step of entering payment instrument information is one of the big pain
points. A lot of people have already gone through that wih Amazon and iTunes,
not so much for Google Checkout. There could be a plausible case that Google
can leapfrog the competition by using ISP billing.

~~~
teilo
Purchasing an app on an Android phone is a distinctly different experience
than purchasing your typical shopping cart product online. "Cart abandonment"
is just not a significant factor in the Marketplace.

You enter your card ONCE, and from that moment forward, the process of buying
an app is nearly identical with the iPhone (UI aside).

