Latest Android news, applications and forum discussion

Dec

24

2010

Google makes 15 minute refunds, AT&T carrier billing, other Market changes official

by Dustin Karnes
tagged , , , , , , , , ,

I’m sure that, by now, most of you have heard about the new Android Market, and all the changes it brings to the table. Changes like skimming down the window for a refund on an app from 24 hours to 15 minutes. Now, Google has started sending an email to developers, making the change official. It’s all pretty standard stuff beyond the refund window, but let’s not forget about AT&T customers now being able to bill apps to their phone bill.

Hit the break for the full email text, and be sure to let us know what you think in the comments!

Hello,

We’re writing to inform you about some changes to Android Market that require your attention.

As we mentioned in an email sent last week, we’ve been updating Android Market with several new features that may affect your applications. That update is now complete and the features are now active:

* The purchase refund period is now 15 minutes, and the maximum size for .apk files is now 50MB.

* The details page for every app now displays the app’s “Promotional Graphic” assets at the top.

* Market is now capable of filtering based on screen sizes and densities. NOTE: Filtering based on GL texture compression formats is not active at this time, but will be available in early January 2011.

* Applications are now automatically added to new Live Wallpapers and Widgets categories, as appropriate.

We’ve also activated two new features on the Publisher site:

* The maximum size of the description field for an application is raised to 4000 characters.

* A minimum of two screen shots is now required for all applications. You can supply up to eight screenshots for each application.

Additionally, we’ve recently redesigned the categories on Android Market to better support users and developers. We’ve split some popular categories, renamed others, and added completely new categories. At this time, we recommend that you take a look at the categories and ensure that your applications are assigned to the best categories for them. For details, see the Android Market Help Center:

http://www.google.com/support/androidmarket/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=113475

Finally, we wanted to bring to your attention that Android Market now offers a new form of payment for users on the AT&T network — Direct Carrier Billing. This payment option lets Android users on the AT&T network purchase applications more easily.

Thank you once again for your continued support of Android Market.

Regards,
The Android Market Team

» See more articles by Dustin Karnes

Categorized as Android Applications, Android News

Comments

  • http://kitoconnell.com/ Kit O’Connell

    I think I have complained about it here before, but I hate the new refund window. It will make me less likely to buy aps, as I know I often take longer than 15 minutes to make a decision. It’s not usually as long as 24 hours, but I wish they’d picked a happy medium like an hour.

  • http://www.bluemoonfibers.com BJ Heeke

    This new shortened window for refunds will definitely curb me from trying out new apps unless they are free!

  • Djgdroid

    15 min. isn’t even enough time when you don’t have a good connection. I am definitely less likely to buy and app that I am not sure if it is what I want. I’m sure you will see that in the near future. Bad choice Android. Sounds to much like an Apple type thing to me. That has been what drove me from apple to android.