Google suspends Pakistani carrier-paid apps as feared

• Pakistan has suspended the ability to download paid apps.
• Google Play Store still accepts credit card payments when downloading a premium app.
• State Bank of Pakistan stopped $34 million in payments to foreign service providers.

Google banned carrier-paid apps in Pakistan due to unpaid balances, despite numerous promises from the Ministry of IT and Telecom.

Our channel checks have verified that the country has suspended the ability to download paid apps using mobile phone accounts. Although the Google Play Store still accepts credit card payments when downloading a premium app, this ban only affects local transactions.

This follows the spectacle from last week, when the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) stopped $34 million in payments to foreign service providers. Numerous people were prevented from downloading paid Google Play Store apps using their mobile balance as a form of payment, which caused pandemonium in the local tech industry.

When the central bank stopped the direct carrier billing (DCB) system, learned that payments made through mobile operators to foreign service providers like Google, Amazon, and Meta became stalled.

In light of the nation’s recent economic problems, the government subsequently decided to allow Google transactions for a month while simultaneously establishing a framework for a reliable payment system to prevent any liquidity shortages. Google has banned carrier-paid apps in Pakistan as a result of the payment obstruction and while it waits for the government to take action to find a solution.

Syed Amin Ul Haque, the IT minister, proposed that a method be developed for paying for the Google App services, and the Ministry of Finance has now accepted this idea. The minister at the time stated that SBP had been instructed to postpone the DCB mechanism policy’s implementation for one month.

Amin Ul Haque stated that the telecom providers had been given a month to adopt payment procedures and that, after consulting one another, the Ministries of IT, Finance, and State Bank will develop a plan of action in that regard within the next month. Amin said that a letter asking Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to make the payments and set a deadline was sent in response to a plea for assistance from the telecom providers.

Jazz CEO Aamir Ibrahim also thanked Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and IT Minister Amin Ul Haque for their prompt action on the matter.

“I’m glad to see that the DCB issue is moving toward a solution. Syed Amin Ul Haque, Ishaq Dar, and SAPM Finance Tariq Bajwa deserve praise for ensuring that Pakistani users can continue to use Google Play apps. To improve the digital ecosystem, a whole-of-government strategy is required, he tweeted on Thursday.

For those who are unaware, DCB is an internet platform for mobile payments that enables customers to make purchases using their carrier bills. Prior to a few weeks ago, telecoms allowed their consumers to purchase these products using airtime and send money abroad, classifying these transactions as payments for IT-related services.

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