Kobo seems to have changed in-app purchases on Android

[Cactus Chef]

Previously, whenever I made a purchase on the Kobo app, it would then pull up the Google Pay/Google Wallet confirmation screen from the Android OS (the same prompt that shows up if you attempt to buy an app from the Google Play app store, or do any other kind of in-app purchase), and the purchase would go through instantly. The downside at the time was that the payment system was isolated from the Kobo account, so I couldn't use any credits I had on my Kobo account.

Now, when I try to purchase a book through the Android app, it wants me to specify a payment method. I see that Google Pay is an option, but when I try to use it, it wants me to sign into my Google account via an iframe inside of the Kobo app, which suggests to me that it's no longer using the Android OS's API to hook into my already-signed-in Google Wallet.

The advantage, for those who care, is that now the Kobo Android app appears to be fully hooked into your Kobo account, as I could see that the purchase was applying some of my account credits before showing me the total. But the downside is, again, it's no longer using Android's "in-app" purchasing model, which I rather liked. I don't want to sign into my Google account on the Kobo app, so I guess I'll just go back to pre-loading my account with gift cards.

[rashkae]

Edit:

I retract my dumb question. I find the Redeem gift card button on Kobo website as Plain as day now. I swear it wasn't there before.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by Cactus Chef

The advantage, for those who care, is that now the Kobo Android app appears to be fully hooked into your Kobo account, as I could see that the purchase was applying some of my account credits before showing me the total. But the downside is, again, it's no longer using Android's "in-app" purchasing model, which I rather liked. I don't want to sign into my Google account on the Kobo app, so I guess I'll just go back to pre-loading my account with gift cards.

Google (and Apple) actually forbade in-app purchases that bypassed the store. They then took a percentage simply for existing. The EU rightly ruled that such behaviour is both anti-competitive and also a "rip-off", as Google (or Apple) then gets a percentage of every sale. That's why for ages you couldn't purchase Kindle ebooks on Android or iOS in the App. You had to go Amazon's web site in a Browser and purchase as if on a computer (Mac, Windows, Linux).

There are also other problems with Google Playstore payments. You can add a method to pay Google in the Playstore, but you have to use a Google account on a Browser to remove a payment method and they don't really remove it! You then have to go to payment provider and get them to remove Google. I'm guessing this is why Playstore ebook sales are so poor compared to almost anyone else.

So this is actually good news. I know people that have payment methods with Kobo and/or Kindle but not Google.

Also if you buy a Google Playstore "gift" aka advance credit in a supermarket etc, Google often insists its fraudulent and it can take a week or never to get the value applied to your account.
Nintendo, Kobo, Amazon and UK/Irish booktokens just work (though with Amazon they have to be bought from the Marketplace where they will be spent, but that works even if not your own). The UK/Irish booktoken system never adjusted for the Sterling / Irish punt break, even before the euro, so you have to buy the booktoken in Sterling for UK (inc NI, natch) and Euro for Ireland if using their online site! The Booktoken people can even send the card in the post to the recipient with a personalised message. Almost all Irish & UK physical bookshops take the gift token, inc one off independents.