MUMBAI (CU)_The Reserve Bank of India recently issued a new regulation under which customers are disallowed to make recurring card payments for applications on Google Playstore, Apple App store and Windows Store without a one-time registration. The mandate, which came into force in October, requires each standing instructions above ₹5,000 ($67) on debit and credit cards to be validated each month, 24 hours prior to the due date.
The move attracted criticism from many multinationals such as Amazon and Netflix, as well as tech start-ups, who claim that they are helplessly losing customers as a result of the new regulation, since many consumers are unwilling to undergo the monthly permission routine. Nevertheless, a recent survey conducted by India’s largest community social media platform found that a large proportion of consumers are in approval of the new mandate, as they have been facing problems with the auto debit rule earlier.
According to Noida-based LocalCircles, following a study which included 40,000 responses from over 300 districts in the country, it was discovered that 83 per cent of Indian consumers support the central bank’s decision, which was aimed at protecting customers from merchants who don’t give subscribers an easy way to exit their plans. Meanwhile, 46 per cent of them said they have been either over charged or wrongfully levied on their payments for apps over the last 12 months.
The survey also revealed that in most cases, Indian consumers purchased their applications from foreign entities.
“The next question in the survey sought to understand from consumers if applications they use raise the invoice. In response, 48% said ‘don’t know’,” LocalCircles noted. “Breaking down the poll, 33% said the applications they use are billed by a foreign entity. Only 19% of Indian consumers who paid for apps for Google Playstore, Apple App store and Windows store said they were invoiced or billed by an Indian entity.”
