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Will the developer need to give 30% of the progressive app price to Google (if it is in the play store)? sorry in advance, if this has already been mentioned

Will the developer need to give 30% of the progressive app price to Google (if it is in the play store)? sorry in advance, if this has already been mentioned somewhere.

dfabulich 8y ago
Yes. The "Trusted Web Activities" (TWA) API referenced in this article is just a convenient way to turn a web page into an Android Activity. (An Activity is a screen in an Android app.) They don't let you paste an URL into the Google Play Store and convert it to APK automagically. You still have to install Android Studio, build your app as an APK, and upload it. You could do this before by coding up a full-screen WebView, but TWA is just nicer in a number of ways. If your app is a paid app, you'll pay Google 30% of that. TWA offers no convenient way to do in-app purchases; if it did, you'd still have to pay Google 30% for those IAPs.
- ravenstine 8y ago
  > You still have to install Android Studio, build your app as an APK, and upload it. :( Not having to do that was what I was hoping for with stores allowing PWAs. Maybe it at least means that the APK only needs to be built once? If it has to be rebuilt for every release, I don't see what this offers that Cordova can't do better.
  - int_19h 8y ago
    From the article: "Is TWA a Hybrid framework, similar to Cordova? No. With Cordova or other hybrid solutions, you are typically shipping your web resources (HTML, JS, CSS, etc.) within your APK package. Also, the engine is different and isolated from the users’ browser, so no session or cache sharing. With Trusted Web Activity you don’t need to package any resource file from your PWA (only native components, in case you want them); all your resources will be downloaded and updated on the fly from your Service Worker. Your PWA will still be rendered with the installed Chrome version, sharing all storage, cache, and sessions with the browser. Therefore, if your user has a session on your website opened when the user installs the app from the Play Store, she will still be logged in. The user is just installing a shortcut to Chrome using a special mode."
    - pier25 8y ago
      So what's the point of the APK?
      - UncleMeat 8y ago
        The OS needs an APK to run it. Just opening your page in the browser won't let you customize as much.
      - int_19h 8y ago
        To contain the metadata for the store entry?
krn 8y ago
If I already have a web app with a built-in recurring subscription functionality, I shouldn't be required to abandon it just to get it published on the Google Play Store. The entire idea of allowing PWAs on Google Play Store seems to be a part of Google's wider product strategy, which includes ChromeOS and Android Go, where using a native app is not always the best choice. Microsoft Store has already been doing this for a while for a different reason: a lack of Windows alternatives to the most popular mobile apps. Apple, on the other hand, has no business case for integrating PWAs into the App Store, because they would just reduce its revenue.
- taurath 8y ago
  If they allow PWAs to get around the 30% IAP feature, then in 5 years there will be no more native apps, only PWAs. I doubt they will allow any non-google play in app purchases to take place.
  - krn 8y ago
    I think the essence of a web app is that it works on any platform. It shouldn't know anything about Google Play Store or Apple App Store. Otherwise, it's just a native app with a webview.
    - pjmlp 8y ago
      They are called PWA, not WA, with P meaning Progressive. The idea is that the app should check for available browser/OS APIs that progressively enhance user's experience. And no they aren't necessarily just a native app with a webview, on UWP a store delived PWA has full access to the UWP APIs, just like .NET and C++, no need to write extra FFI manually. No need for Frankenstein solutions like Cordova. https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/pwa https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/pwa https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/progressive-web-apps/windows-features?branch=pwa#call-winrt-apis-from-your-pwa https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/progressive-...
benologist 8y ago
You'll also be switching to a payment provider you can never contact.
- titanomachy 8y ago
  I think Google customer service has gotten better, last time I called I had a human in 3 mins or so. Not sure how useful those humans are on average, though. The one I got was helpful.
kinlan 8y ago
Team member here. You have to abide by all the rules of the store to be listed in the store.

Will the developer need to give 30% of the progressive app price to Google (if it is in the play store)? sorry in advance, if this has already been mentioned somewhere.

dfabulich 8y ago

Yes. The "Trusted Web Activities" (TWA) API referenced in this article is just a convenient way to turn a web page into an Android Activity. (An Activity is a screen in an Android app.) They don't let you paste an URL into the Google Play Store and convert it to APK automagically. You still have to install Android Studio, build your app as an APK, and upload it. You could do this before by coding up a full-screen WebView, but TWA is just nicer in a number of ways. If your app is a paid app, you'll pay Google 30% of that. TWA offers no convenient way to do in-app purchases; if it did, you'd still have to pay Google 30% for those IAPs.

ravenstine 8y ago
> You still have to install Android Studio, build your app as an APK, and upload it. :( Not having to do that was what I was hoping for with stores allowing PWAs. Maybe it at least means that the APK only needs to be built once? If it has to be rebuilt for every release, I don't see what this offers that Cordova can't do better.
- int_19h 8y ago
  From the article: "Is TWA a Hybrid framework, similar to Cordova? No. With Cordova or other hybrid solutions, you are typically shipping your web resources (HTML, JS, CSS, etc.) within your APK package. Also, the engine is different and isolated from the users’ browser, so no session or cache sharing. With Trusted Web Activity you don’t need to package any resource file from your PWA (only native components, in case you want them); all your resources will be downloaded and updated on the fly from your Service Worker. Your PWA will still be rendered with the installed Chrome version, sharing all storage, cache, and sessions with the browser. Therefore, if your user has a session on your website opened when the user installs the app from the Play Store, she will still be logged in. The user is just installing a shortcut to Chrome using a special mode."
  - pier25 8y ago
    So what's the point of the APK?
    - UncleMeat 8y ago
      The OS needs an APK to run it. Just opening your page in the browser won't let you customize as much.
    - int_19h 8y ago
      To contain the metadata for the store entry?

krn 8y ago

If I already have a web app with a built-in recurring subscription functionality, I shouldn't be required to abandon it just to get it published on the Google Play Store. The entire idea of allowing PWAs on Google Play Store seems to be a part of Google's wider product strategy, which includes ChromeOS and Android Go, where using a native app is not always the best choice. Microsoft Store has already been doing this for a while for a different reason: a lack of Windows alternatives to the most popular mobile apps. Apple, on the other hand, has no business case for integrating PWAs into the App Store, because they would just reduce its revenue.

taurath 8y ago
If they allow PWAs to get around the 30% IAP feature, then in 5 years there will be no more native apps, only PWAs. I doubt they will allow any non-google play in app purchases to take place.
- krn 8y ago
  I think the essence of a web app is that it works on any platform. It shouldn't know anything about Google Play Store or Apple App Store. Otherwise, it's just a native app with a webview.
  - pjmlp 8y ago
    They are called PWA, not WA, with P meaning Progressive. The idea is that the app should check for available browser/OS APIs that progressively enhance user's experience. And no they aren't necessarily just a native app with a webview, on UWP a store delived PWA has full access to the UWP APIs, just like .NET and C++, no need to write extra FFI manually. No need for Frankenstein solutions like Cordova. https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/pwa https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/pwa https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/progressive-web-apps/windows-features?branch=pwa#call-winrt-apis-from-your-pwa https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/progressive-...

benologist 8y ago

You'll also be switching to a payment provider you can never contact.

titanomachy 8y ago
I think Google customer service has gotten better, last time I called I had a human in 3 mins or so. Not sure how useful those humans are on average, though. The one I got was helpful.

kinlan 8y ago

Team member here. You have to abide by all the rules of the store to be listed in the store.