Taiwanese users of Google Inc’s Android Market were left in the dark yesterday as the search engine giant removed the paid app section from its online store.
The removal of the paid app section came after the Taipei City Government slapped Google with a NT$1 million (US$34,550) fine for failing to offer Taiwanese consumers a seven-day free-trial mechanism as mandated by law.
“We are suspending paid apps in Taiwan while we continue to discuss this issue with the Taipei City Government,” Google Taiwan said in a statement yesterday.
Photo: Tsai Wei-chi, Taipei Times
15-MINUTE REFUND
“Android Market already provides a 15-minute refund window for all paid apps — which reflects the fact that apps are delivered over-the-air instantly and most users who request a refund [could] do so within minutes of their purchase,” the company said in the statement.
This policy helps consumers make educated decisions about the apps they buy, while enabling Taiwanese developers to manage their businesses effectively, the statement read.
The escalation in the row came after negotiation between Google — represented by a lawyer and teleconferencers from its US headquarters — and the city broke down yesterday morning.
‘COERCION’
The city government said the suspension was a move to “coerce Taiwanese consumers into giving up their rights” and it demanded Google submit an “improvisation plan” by Friday.
The Mountain View, California-based company will be sending officials to Taipei on Thursday to continue talks with the city government, while city authorities said a second penalty might be imposed depending on the stance taken by the search engine giant.
On Friday, the city government issued Google an ultimatum mandating that it introduce a seven-day free-trial mechanism for its Android Market.
Yeh Ching-yuan (葉慶元), director of the city’s Law and Regulation Commission, then said a fine would be levied if the firm still refused to abide by the Consumer Protection Act (消保法).
Users of Apple Inc’s iPhones or Android-equipped smartphones can purchase and download application software through Apple’s App Store or the Android Market respectively, but neither company offers an extensive free-trial mechanism that allows customers to return the programs or be refunded if they are dissatisfied or if the goods prove to be faulty.
On June 4, the city government gave both companies a 15-day grace period to revise their app sales and service provisions to include a seven-day free-trial mechanism.
While Apple complied with the request, Google did not.
SIGHT UNSEEN
The Consumer Protection Act requires a free-trial period of at least seven days for items purchased over the Web because consumers cannot feel or touch the goods before purchase.
Previously, Web sites have said they were not covered by the law, but last year the government said an agreement was reached with Web site operators such as PChome Online (網路家庭) and -Yahoo-Kimo Inc (雅虎奇摩) that would see them adhere to the free-trial provision.
APP STORES
However, “app stores” were not included in last year’s deal.
Yeh said this is because purchasing apps for mobile devices is a trend that has only recently emerged in Taiwan.
The terms of service for the App Store and Android Market both state that the two companies are not liable for apps developed by third parties.
HTC Corp (宏達電), the world’s No. 5 smartphone brand, yesterday said it did not expect the row to have “much impact” on the sales of its handsets because users could download free-trial versions of some apps, before finally making a purchase decision.
HTC is the world’s largest producer of smartphones running on both Android and Windows operating systems and its first tablet PC — dubbed the HTC Flyer — as well as recent releases of smartphones all run on versions of Android.
Authorities have detained three former Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TMSC, 台積電) employees on suspicion of compromising classified technology used in making 2-nanometer chips, the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office said yesterday. Prosecutors are holding a former TSMC engineer surnamed Chen (陳) and two recently sacked TSMC engineers, including one person surnamed Wu (吳) in detention with restricted communication, following an investigation launched on July 25, a statement said. The announcement came a day after Nikkei Asia reported on the technology theft in an exclusive story, saying TSMC had fired two workers for contravening data rules on advanced chipmaking technology. Two-nanometer wafers are the most
Tsunami waves were possible in three areas of Kamchatka in Russia’s Far East, the Russian Ministry for Emergency Services said yesterday after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit the nearby Kuril Islands. “The expected wave heights are low, but you must still move away from the shore,” the ministry said on the Telegram messaging app, after the latest seismic activity in the area. However, the Pacific Tsunami Warning System in Hawaii said there was no tsunami warning after the quake. The Russian tsunami alert was later canceled. Overnight, the Krasheninnikov volcano in Kamchatka erupted for the first time in 600 years, Russia’s RIA
CHINA’s BULLYING: The former British prime minister said that he believes ‘Taiwan can and will’ protect its freedom and democracy, as its people are lovers of liberty Former British prime minister Boris Johnson yesterday said Western nations should have the courage to stand with and deepen their economic partnerships with Taiwan in the face of China’s intensified pressure. He made the remarks at the ninth Ketagalan Forum: 2025 Indo-Pacific Security Dialogue hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prospect Foundation in Taipei. Johnson, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time, said he had seen Taiwan’s coastline on a screen on his indoor bicycle, but wanted to learn more about the nation, including its artificial intelligence (AI) development, the key technology of the 21st century. Calling himself an
South Korea yesterday said that it was removing loudspeakers used to blare K-pop and news reports to North Korea, as the new administration in Seoul tries to ease tensions with its bellicose neighbor. The nations, still technically at war, had already halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitarized zone, Seoul’s military said in June after the election of South Korean President Lee Jae-myung. It said in June that Pyongyang stopped transmitting bizarre, unsettling noises along the border that had become a major nuisance for South Korean residents, a day after South Korea’s loudspeakers fell silent. “Starting today, the military has begun removing the loudspeakers,”
RSS