Google agrees to restore deleted Indian apps, IT minister says

Google agrees to restore Indian apps after dispute over service fees, following pushback from government and startups.

Alphabet's Google has agreed to restore the Indian apps it deleted from its app store after a dispute over service fee payments, India's IT minister said on Tuesday, following pushback from the government and startups.

Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The U.S. firm on Friday removed more than 100 Indian apps, including popular ones by Matrimony.com, for not complying with its policy of paying a service fee when in-app payment options other than Google's are used.

The app removals sparked criticism from Indian companies, many of which have been at odds with Google for years and criticised its practices. Google has maintained that its in-app fee helps develop and promote the Android and Play Store ecosystem.

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"... We believe that in the coming months, both the start-up community as well as Google would be able to come to a long-term resolution," IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told Reuters partner ANI.