Physical address is required for paid apps or in-app purchases | Hacker News Reader

Physical address is required for paid apps or in-app purchases

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32 pointsrollout17 comments

This seems kind of out of left field. Indie devs won't like purchasing a PO Box assuming Google allows them. Posting your address to users seems like a great way to get swatted in this day in age. Oh I'm angry at this flappy bird clone developer? Lets send swat, pizzas, etc their way.

This seemed bad when I initially read it, but now that you raise the "4chan problem" this goes from bad to really really bad. People will absolutely get "joked" via this at some stage.

The thing I really liked about Android is that for a one time $35 fee (plus a domain) you could make an app, and even charge money for that app. That's a very low barrier to entry (which is good/bad depending on who you ask).

Now with this requirement (and the risks associated) I need to pay for a PO Box or rent another business address. PO Boxes seem to start at around $10/month for the smallest one (via the US PO).

$120/year + $35 + domain/hosting is a huge jump (more than double) the cost to develop on Android. Apple "only" charge $99/year, however you do also need a Mac.

Could you use the same PO box for multiple apps?

More utter idiocy from the Play Store policy people. Wow.

It's almost like Google don't want people to develop on the Play Store. That's not a conspiracy, I'm putting it down to ineptitude.

For a long time I've wondered about starting something to take on the Play Store (and more viciously the Play Services library) and this might just be the kick to do it.

EDIT: btw, I'm entirely serious. If anyone is interested please contact me.

EDIT 2: Koushik Dutta posted this on G+: https://plus.google.com/110558071969009568835/posts/fQh9pLw7...

I bet this is to do with them still being confused about who the merchant of sale in this situation is supposed to be and taking the easy way out, leaving everyone else to pick up the pieces.

You may want to take a look at F-Droid before launching a Play Store competitor: https://f-droid.org/

I'm aware of it, and it is good, but the key feature of app stores is that they are platforms on which people can make money.

It also doesn't represent any sort of coherent product. About 50% of what I intend to do is to integrate a few of the things on it into a polished bundle, a bit like the way Android itself contains a few random other projects at a lower level.

I'm guessing this is a move to protect users and/or Google from malicious apps. I'm not sure how exactly it protects them since it's easy to enter a fake address.

If you care about your privacy I recommend using a 3rd party mailbox (eg UPS Store) for all your mail. I've been using them for almost 10 years. Not only will they protect your home address but they will receive and store shipped items. No more worrying about a package getting stolen or having to be home to sign. This is especially useful if you move regularly and/or travel a lot.

This is dumb - really, really, really dumb. What an idiotic policy. This would absolutely stop me from publishing anything on the Play Store as an individual developer.

I've not yet made an Android app, but I'm toying with one, and I echo the concerns of the developer that posted. I can't imagine a lot of indy devs want their apartment information available to the toxic zone that is app feedback. "FC everytime! 1 start and I'm coming to your apartment!"

What's Apple's policy with respect to this sorta thing?

Here's an AP article on it:

http://www.androidpolice.com/2014/09/18/google-will-now-requ...

Not a lot of additional info unfortunately.

You mean, Android Police, not Associated Press, of course.

I have not received this email yet. Is this exclusive to just US devs? (i'm from Singapore)

Go to your developer console and click "Announcements" on the left side of the page.

Will they allow a PO box?

If you have a USPS PO Box, some allow you to specify the street address as the address, and they can match your box to your name.

Use a general delivery address:

John Doe

General Delivery

Tampa, FL 33601-9999 (Note the 4 9's at the end)

https://www.usps.com/manage/forward-mail.htm#3

It'll Zip+4 verify, and its a physical address. The postal service will reject any mail you don't pick up within 30 days, but Google would never mail you something, no?

I wonder what will be the response from google

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