Google Play billing integrated into Flexion wrapper to help developers utilise in-app billing

LONDON, 15 November 2012 – Flexion Mobile Limited, the company that provides one-click monetisation solutions for mobile apps, announced today that its wrapper will be offered with free support of Google Play in-app billing.

The integration of Google’s in-app billing SDK into the Flexion wrapper means that developers can launch their apps with in-app billing in Google Play without needing to add Google’s SDK to their own code. Normally, Flexion charges a fee for each managed transaction that uses the wrapper but will not charge for any transactions made with Google’s billing. This will help reduce development costs and improve conversion rates for developers on Google Play.

At present, Android developers only have a limited number of options for monetising their apps on Google Play and most developers struggle to generate sufficient revenue. Pay-per-downloads come with very low conversion rates whilst the free-to-play model requires very high volumes. Creating freemium versions requires developers to invest a lot of additional development time and to integrate Google Play billing. Alternatively, developing limited demos that link to the pay-per-download version in the store means creating two separate products and conversion rates remain low.

With Google Play’s in-app billing incorporated into the Flexion wrapper, developers will benefit from a number of advantages. The wrapper removes the need for low-converting demo versions since consumers can trial full, wrapped versions before deciding whether to purchase. An additional benefit is that developers can also use Flexion’s licensing features, enabling new pricing models such as rentals and subscriptions.

Flexion is already running the Nokia Try&Buy programme where developers have seen revenue uplifts of several hundred percent compared to the pay-per-download model. To date, the company has wrapped more than 2,000 Java and Android apps and adds approximately 20 million new product consumers to the platform each month.

In addition to in-app billing, the wrapper also enables two further monetisation models: an offer wall, which lets consumers earn virtual currency to spend in the game, and a free-to-play model, which allows users to play for free in return for watching adverts.

The wrapper also helps to cross-promote other titles by turning wrapped games into fully-fledged content promotion interfaces. An additional benefit is the stronger DRM protection offered by the wrapper – something that most premium apps are lacking in Google Play.

“For many Android developers, Google Play is the only market channel for their apps and until now, they’ve struggled to make money due to weak monetisation and high costs associated with supporting the platform,” commented Jens Lauritzson, CEO of Flexion. “We hope to help all developers by offering free enabling of Google Play in-app billing with our wrapper and at the same time offer a range of other monetisation methods which can help them increase their revenues.”