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Google has disclosed that it will allow a small number of participating developers the opportunity to offer third-party payment options for applications that are accessible on the Google Play Store. The pilot programme will begin with the music streaming application Spotify.

Shared via an Android Developers blog post yesterday, Google reported that it will permit Android users to choose a payment system other than its own soon. Furthermore, it will just begin with Spotify and other trusted partners first because of safety concerns.

“We think that users should continue to have the choice to use Play’s billing system when they install an app from Google Play. We also think it’s critical that alternative billing systems meet similarly high safety standards in protecting users’ personal data and sensitive financial information.” Google’s Vice President of Product Management, Sameer Samat, stated in a blog post.

This pilot comes as Google and Apple face expanded scrutiny over their application store practises in India and different nations.

Spotify will be the first application to participate and has even reported a “multi-year agreement” with Google. That implies it will offer the Google Play charging system as well as a secondary choice of its own.

“Users who’ve downloaded Spotify from the Google Play Store will be presented with a choice to pay with either Spotify’s payment system or with Google Play Billing,” Spotify stated in an official statement. “For the first time, these two options will live side by side in the app. This will give everyone the freedom to subscribe and make purchases using the payment option of their choice directly in the Spotify app.”