Shocking News About Google Play Services.
Google Play Services
ISLAMABAD: After the State Bank of Pakistan revoked the payment of $34 million to foreign service providers, mobile users in Pakistan won’t be able to download Google Play Services starting on December 1, 2022, it was learned.
Payment of $34 million annually through mobile companies to international service providers, such as Google, Amazon, and Meta, among others, got stuck up when the SBP suspended the Direct Carrier Billing (DCB) mechanism.
Customers from Pakistan will now be compelled to download Google and other foreign apps in order to make payments using credit cards or debit cards only. However, because the credit card option is only available to a select number of customers, the majority of mobile users might not be able to download apps from the Google Play Store.
Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA)
In light of the nation’s current liquidity crisis, the State Bank of Pakistan was jointly requested in a letter sent on Friday by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), the Ministry of Information Technology & Telecommunication, and four cellular mobile operators (CMOs) to reevaluate its decision to revoke the DCB mechanism for payment of the dollar fee.
Leading government sources confirmed to The News that Google Play services like downloading apps won’t be available. They warned the appropriate authorities that they would stop providing their services for Google Play Services downloads if a $34 million payment was not made.
The four mobile operators asserted in a joint letter to the government that, in addition to its other sizeable contributions in the form of taxes, duties, and other levies, the telecom industry is one of the major sources of foreign direct investment.
Digital Pakistan’s
It is impossible to ignore the contribution that the telecom sector has made to the advancement of Digital Pakistan’s objectives. If Pakistan’s digital transformation is to have a positive effect on all social and economic sectors, all stakeholders must be involved and help to facilitate it.
The State Bank of Pakistan revoked telecom operators’ IT designations months ago (SBP). It was also suggested that each case be sent to SBP separately for approval. The mobile operators complained that this was leading to significant delays in obtaining approvals, which was interfering with essential services.
Among these services are billing management, software for managing fraud, Office 365, robotics automation software, payments for software developers, and payments for digital advertising on significant IT platforms.
cloud platforms
The hosting on cloud platforms, licenses needed for services/platforms, security features, and in many cases technical expertise to upskill the local workforce to meet international standards are all areas where Pakistan’s digital economy heavily depends on foreign service providers.
All of the major players, including Google, Amazon, and Meta, are likely to stop offering their services as a result of the effects of non-payment. This will have the direct effect of preventing telecom and internet users from using digital platforms like those used for digital banking, e-commerce, e-education, and e-health that rely on cloud infrastructure and demand licenses for both applications and web-based platforms.
Digital marketing
Distribution of digital platforms and their monetization will become very challenging due to the lack of interest and support for distribution from the market leaders representing Facebook, such as Google, Amazon, and Apple. Digital marketing, which is currently the most efficient channel for all brands, services, and products, will either drastically decline or completely disappear, having an impact on brands, services, and products outside of the digital sphere.
In this age of social media, the letter warned that any potential disruption of these digital services due to non-payments “would create a lot of negativity about Pakistan in the world and should be avoided at all costs.”
The letter’s conclusion stated, “It is pertinent to mention here that we all understand the current challenge of the deteriorating economic conditions of the country and are open to working amicably with the Regulator (SBP); as we are already working with them in case of the telecom sector imports related transactions to navigate through these trying times.
