Google has launched a subscription service offering users access to more than 350 “completely unlocked” Android apps and games for a monthly fee. All software provided via the Play Pass will be supplied without any ads or in-app charges.
Google’s package will only contain existing products already available on its Play Store to begin with. The announcement comes days after Apple launched its own games-centric subscription service, reports BBC.
Like Apple, Google plans to charge $4.99 (£4.00) a month for its service. However, it is also promising early adopters a $1.99/month fee for the first year of membership.
To start with, Play Pass will be limited to US-based subscribers, but the firm has suggested that it will be extended to other countries soon.
“Apple has worked really hard to curate some cutting-edge content of a very high quality,” commented Ben Wood from the consultancy CCS Insight.
“But Google has been able to throw a wider net and get more titles.
“And that somewhat neutralizes the threat that Apple Arcade could pose if someone was thinking about switching from iPhone to Android on that basis.”
Included apps highlighted by Google include:
Apple Arcade, by contrast, promises to deliver access to more than 100 “new games” that are not otherwise available on iOS, and in some cases cannot be bought for other platforms either.
