Google announces "pending transactions" to allow you to buy apps and games with money

For convenience, the Google Play Store supports the purchase of apps and games using various credit and debit cards, PayPal and other payment options. Google has announced a new option: pending transactions.

This is an option designed for people who do not have cards or who simply do not want to use them. It pays for Android games and applications, as well as in-app purchases, and is ideal for emerging markets.

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We may have gone largely to a cashless society, but this latest Google initiative is a recognition that this is not the case for everyone, or anywhere in the world. Until now, the inability to pay for apps and games using cash meant that developers – and consequently Google – were losing a lot of their potential revenue. With "pending transactions", it changes.

At the Google I / O Developer Conference, Aurash Mahbod, Google's Director of Engineering, said:

We know that emerging markets are a key growth area for all of you. That is why we are delighted to announce "pending transactions". This is a new class of deferred payment methods, such as cash, bank transfers and direct debits.

So, how does the system work?

Pending transactions offer users the ability to make a purchase on Google Play and select another payment method. This will allow them to obtain a payment code and the transaction can be finalized in person at a nearby store.

Once payment is made to a store, convenience store or supermarket, the application or game purchased is unlocked and made available to the user.

Google has not specified when the system will be operational or in which countries it will be available.

Image credit: Vladyslav Trenikhin / Shutterstock