PhonePe, a Bengaluru-based digital payments firm, has unveiled its own app store platform targeting Android developers in India.
Unlike Google’s Play Store, the Indus Appstore Developer Platform won’t charge developers a platform fee or take a cut of in-app sales or registrations for the first year.
After that initial period, there will be a nominal price for developers.
In contrast to Google’s 15-30% cut of in-app sales, PhonePe will not charge a fee on such transactions.
The platform supports features such as third-party payment processors, 12 Indian languages, and a phone number-based login mechanism, catering to the local market.
PhonePe has established an India-based team to provide assistance to developers and aims to address concerns about Google’s support.
The move comes as more Indian companies and startups express discontent with Google, given that over 95% of smartphones in India run the Android operating system.
PhonePe’s app store is set to launch in April.
