PayPal made an informal announcement today indicating that it will soon offer in-app purchases for both the iPhone and Android platforms. While surprising, the company said it has already gained approval from both Apple and Google to do so.
Though details are scant and nothing is carved in stone, PayPal says it has managed to come up with a solution that is acceptable to Apple. “We have found a way, Apple is OK with it,” said Paypal Benelux Country Manager Dennis van Allermeersch. Equally surprising is that Google would allow PayPal as an alternative to Google Checkout, though not as surprising when taking into account Android’s approach to openness.
PayPal refers to its iPhone in-app payment solution as its “iPhone Library,” which will be used to facilitate payments for physical goods and services, not for virtual purchases, yet. Some speculate Apple approved the service because it compliments its virtual in-app purchase system, providing tools that Apple doesn’t currently provide for iPhone owners.
Included will also be an API, which will allow developers to include in-app purchases without leaving the app, among other things. PayPal explained how its iPhone Library operates a while back on its PayPal X Developer Network, saying;
With our iPhone library, you’ll be able to start accepting payments for physical goods and services in a matter of minutes. Whether you’re looking to replicate a storefront you have online or you’re making something unique for the mobile device, this library can help you get paid. You won’t need to collect financial information or make users go to your website to complete a purchase. With our library, we’ll take care of the payment flow and you can keep focusing on making those great apps. Here’s how it will work. You’ll call a method to tell us how much you want to charge and who the money should go to. We’ll then slide up a view for the consumer to confirm the payment. When it’s complete, we’ll slide this back down.
PayPal says it will launch their In App payment service in Q2 to the US, Canada, UK, France, Italy, The Netherlands and Australia, and hopefully more details will emerge in the time leading up to the launch.
