[Q] Google Play app VAT/Sales Tax - App Stores

**Really sorry if I shouldn't have asked a question here, but wherever I try to post it, it pops up with a message saying it's not a Q&A forum, but I can't see where I should put it, plus the answer would be really useful to others I should imagine**
Hi
Just over a week ago I released my first Android app, I made an ad supported free version, and a paid version with no ads in it.
Since having a look around the settings in my Google Merchant account, I discovered a section about setting tax rates for my apps.
I have been through the hassle of getting the rates for each country I want my apps sold in.
I am wondering whether that was the correct thing to do, I have seen things on various forums saying I don't need to collect VAT unless I earn over £81,000 (I'm in the UK btw, and I'd be quite happy to make £100), others have said only put in the tax rate for the country which I'm selling from, others have said input for every country selling to.
I'm confused as to which I should have done.
Also, I saw that it said that Google will take the VAT off the gross price, then take their 30% off the net price, they will then pass on the gross price minus their cut, e.g.:
if app is £1
UK VAT is 20% so £1 minus 20% is £0.80
Google will take 30% of the £0.80, so this would be £0.24
They will then pass on the gross price minus their cut, so pass on £0.76
The way I read that I have £0.20 which is VAT sitting in my bank account, am I supposed to pay this in somehow, even if I'm not VAT registered, do I have to do that for every country around the world that I sell my apps to? And can I pay it all to the UK government or do I have to pay each relevant government their cut?
It's only a 69p app, I'm an unknown, I don't expect it to make huge amounts of money, I just wanted to learn and see how far I could get, might even look good on my CV, but the "paperwork" side of getting this thing up and running has been a headache.
For a multi billion dollar company, I think Google have done a really bad job of trying to encourage people that aren't part of large companies to develop apps, Apple deal with it all for you!

Money Saving Expert (great UK forum for anything to do with money have answered the question for me, as being a No don't put tax rates on as charging VAT when not VAT registered (due to being below the threshold) is fraud

I'm from Italy and I'm blocked on this question too.
Is there somebody who knows The Answer?

Related

Trying to sell one of my Wizards on ebay, arghhhh

I have 2, one of which is brand new, I've put it up on ebay 3 times now, and each time some idiot or another with a fake account tries to buy it, and I have to relist the god damn thing.
Anybody know of anywhere else I can try to sell it?
Cheers in advance.
I have had attmepted scams as well. Choose Paypal only, and also find the thing which makes the Paypal buyer have a validated account. Also I put in very large font at the end of an auction description that I won't post to Nigeria and No Scammers. Only set postage to UK/EU as well to limit scammers.
HiH
Joe
E-bay is total pants !
Just had the sme trouble with my Exec , gave up in the end
also had trouble when I sold my 9500 , I had some idiot mail saying he wanted to pay by paypal and then collect in person over the next hour - "great !" I thought , but unfortunately I had missed his mail by a few hours
Then the following day I get a mail from the same guy (he TOLD me he was the same guy !) but using a different ID , saying he still wanted to pay by paypal and collect within an hour ,
I smelt a rat and looked up the old ID , Sure enough , he had made several large (£300 +) paypal purchase , all pretty local the previous day and was now "no longer a registered user" - He had obviously got a stolen Paypal account
Anyway ....... I contacted Ebay to alert them (thinking i was helping them out !) I received a reply telling me I had got it all wrong , and there was nothing to link the two accounts :? - fair enough , no skin off my nose !
Needless to say , when I looked a few days later , the second ID had been revoked , but not before he had racked up about £3,000 in paypal purchases !
I learned a valuable lesson that day
EBAY DO NOT GIVE A TOSS ABOUT FRAUD , UNLESS THEIR FEES ARE AT RISK !
Makes me sick to see all the idiots out there selling photo's of xboxes etc with "please note this auction is for a photo" in small print hidden among the spec
Ebay sucks
:x
same for me
I had once an issue with a guy from Hong Kong who did not ship. I tried to mail him 5 times, no reply. Then he wrote that he "sent another unit today". I waited a month, tried again, no comment.
I ended up leaving him a negative feedback. Guess what? he left one for me as well "do not sell anything to this guy..." I tried to talk to ebay and sent them the entire emails history. They were not willing to delete his feedback. ebay does not really protect you.
only remember one rule on ebay..
always deal with person who uses paypal & have feedbacks over 50.
FWIW, that's how I ended up getting my BA and smartphone. I bid on each item and ended up losing the auction in the end but since the seller had "USA Only" and / or I have good feedback while another bidder didn't or had none, the high bidders were thrown out and I was offered the chance to "buy it now". Which is what I did in both cases and in both cases the seller and myself were both pretty happy with the results. I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you explicitly say "UK / Eur ONLY" (maybe USA, we're not all a-holes over here ), PayPal only and no bidders with less than X feedback or less than 100% good feedback, then you have every right to blow off the scum. Ebay isn't bad, you just have to make sure you spell everything out and apply a little common sense. You could also try to sell it here or on modaco.com and specify paypal only, it's not just limited to ebay.
I don't think eBay is that bad- as long as you clearly specify selling/buyer requirements.
I sold one of my 'free upgrade' MDA Compacts in a 5 day listing the first time.
Do keep an eye out on the feedback, location, etc of all bidders on your item. If in doubt, just remove their bid.
I've sold other more expensive things too- electrical goods, alloy wheels, etc all without problem.
Things like insisting on some kind of deposit as soon as the auction had ended would safe guard you somewhat too.
ebay!!
I just want to add this to advice when you sell anything on ebay in order to avoid trouble ,use buy it now & paypal ,what you do is when you in steps of listing there is a box wich if ticked <immediate payment reqiured> ,you only sell your goods to the once ho pay you immediately so they don't win the auction till they pay you trough paypal and you receive the money
:wink:
these scammers are called nigeria connection...it is a very big problem... try to exclude bidders from countrys except your country... for germany this works, i never had problems with them again
Sorry about those Nigerian scammers....
BUT I ASSURE YOU THERE ARE MANY NIGERIANS WHO ARE INDEED VERY STRAIGHT. I'AM ONE. BUT TRULY WHEN YOU DEAL WITH "NIGERIANS" DO BE CAREFUL!!!
Probably best not to stereotype...
fearomoon said:
these scammers are called nigeria connection...it is a very big problem... try to exclude bidders from countrys except your country... for germany this works, i never had problems with them again
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Click to collapse
This upto a point works but no matter what country they come from they are now seemingly able to register with UK accounts so it's not always easy to block buyers from other countries.
Ebay is great!
Well I would just like to add that I am an experienced ebayer having been involved with over 200 transactions and in all that time, only one ended up being from a dodgy buyer!
Some good advice has already been given here so take heed! Selecting immediate payment for Paypal is the best & smartest solution.
Saying that I agree that ebay have a bad history with their customer service relationship, they are not that bothered as they are making millions every day!
I bought my O2 mini S on Ebay. Got a great deal ($520) and great service from a UK seller who got it in my hands in a week. Prior to that, however, I did have a couple of bad experiences including one where the K-Jam seller added new bidder requirements a day before the auction closed and cancelled my leading bid. It sold the next to a "mystery buyer" with a new account for the same price I had bid. He clearly had bid on his own product because he did not like the way the auction was proceeding. I think I got him reprimanded but it took a dozen frustrating emails to customer service to get them to acknowledge that what he did was a flagrant violation of the rules.

Ebay - be cautious

I have seen a few references to ebay on this and other media.
The basic idea behind ebay is great and it started off brilliantly with people selling used or unwanted stuff to other people looking for exactly that stuff.
In the meantime most of the stuff you find on ebay is cheap crap made in China (not everything made in China in bad!, but most crap is made in China) I think.
Like cigarettes, all advertising for ebay should contain a warning: Buying here might be harm your purse.
Sorry if I sound a bit cynical but fact is that ebay is trmendeously successful and people get carried away. I use ebay myself occasionally but I would never ever (again) by a phone or accessory on ebay.
This is all my humble opinion. I do try support serious online shops that sell good products and good service at a competitive price. My advice here: Always see to it that the online shop you buy from provides full contact details on their website: postal address and a valid phone and fax number. There are too many shops out there with no physical address at all which to me is quite dubious.
Cheers
I've been purchasing a quite a few things off eBay, mostly UK sellers, and all of the product I've got are brilliant. If you were to think China products are mostly crap, you can well steer away from it (i.e. most of the China sellers have a word 'China' on the item location).
Anyway, I have bought a powered USB hub from China (via eBay) for GBP5 (include P&P). For the same product, if you were to get it from here in UK, it will cost you at least GBP15+. And yes, my USB hub is still here and I'm using it.
And, yeah, I've got myself a 512 Kingston SD from China, for GBP5 cheaper than of UK sellers.
Anyway, with most people saying that China will be an "economy threat" to others, I'm sure there are some reason to that (i.e. you can't be a threat by manufacturing craps). You might want to reconsider your point of view.
Anyway, I've got my Charmer off eBay for GBP150, that is more than 50% off as compared I were to get it (without contract) off local/web stores.
I have saved tons of money from getting stuff from Ebay, which includes my K-Jam.
I've bought a lot of stuff from ebay.
However, selling stuff on ebay, obviously be extremely careful about your purchaser and receive positive indication of payment before posting.
Buying: well, you take your chances of course. I've had bargains on some small electricals (eg USB hubs etc), but if you're paying that kind of money, be prepared for crap quality, and then hope you'll be pleasantly suprised.
I've had my fair share of scammers and non paying auction winners. I think your level of caution should grow the more expensive the item, of course. A lot of guys will try to scam you out of a phone, or into a stolen one (or one without a touch screen :wink
V
I've managed to find original XDA accessories (Keyboard for £16 and Extended Battery for £11!!!!!!!) selling stupidly cheap (would cost 5x more in the shops) and both work great!
Regards,
Neil.
I think there's some golden rules with eBay...
Take everything you see on there with at least a pinch of salt.
Remember, some fraudsters will get others to post fake good feedback, I've seen this in the past and although it's hard, it's possible.
Also make sure you can pay via a scheme which offers Buyer protection - the standard eBay buyer protection is VERY inadequate, and it's really hard to get your money back (and they charge a fee for the service too). If you have a credit card, usually if you have a problem you can speak to your credit card company directly and they will protect you from fraud by charging back the transaction (as far as I know, all UK credit card companies offer free fraud protection these days, so if you are defrauded out of your money they'll give it straight back and get in touch with the transaction processing company themselves to resolve the situation).
Avoid paying by cheque/cash/postal order wherever possible, you're just asking to be taken for a ride like that. Also, third party escrow companies not run or approved by eBay you should steer VERY clear of, I have seen people defrauded by fake escrow agencies. Anybody who pays with cash is just asking to be mugged.
Read the item description VERY carefully - I'm amazed how many people complain that they've received something they didn't want, or people who put negative feedback on items after they bought something which was actually broken (and said so in the description)... They have only themselves to blame. Scour the eBay description every time, and don't be afraid to ask the seller further questions or request pictures / more information if you feel you need it to be confident enough to make the bid.
Everyone with an ounce of common sense will already realise this, I hope.
Thanks for the tips guys.
Always remember " if it sounds too good to be true, it will be !!! "
Just sold my magician on eBay at the second attempt. I've bought quite a lot on eBay, even from Hong Kong and everything's been fine and dandy.
As a seller I'm a bit of a newbie and some nigerian tried to scam me out of my magician. He registered that very day claiming to be an american on business in Nigeria. He even went so far as sending me a fake PayPal confirmation.
I smelled a rat straight away when he said he wanted it posted to nigeria but gave him a chance given that there was a 0.0000001% chance he might have been genuine. When the fake PayPal came through though that was it. I reported him to eBay, PayPal, the owner of the domain he was using to (try to) scam me and then re-listed. He was thrown off eBay in short thrift and I soon had another (genuine this time) buyer.
If selling, you can specify that bidders MUST have a PayPal account and with "But It Now" you can specify immediate PayPay payment. Make sure you do and you really should be OK.
I have my money and the magician is in the post.
Everybody is happy.
P.S. Why do 99% of the world's internet scammers come from Nigeria?
There's a culture, particularly in Nigeria, that scamming people from richer countries is almost entirely acceptable, as the scammers prey on the gullibility and greed of the rich people who usually fall for the scams (the promise of millions with a much smaller payment, what stupid rich person could turn that down?) - some people make a living exclusively from scamming Europeans and Americans (they call their targets 'mugus', singular mugu)... The most prevalent scam is the Advance Fee Fraud - the 419 scam (so called due to the number of the Nigerian law which makes it technically illegal... The thing is, these laws are rarely enforced, and corruption itself is widespread throughout the police force and government).
Of course, this is just how I interpret it, but you'll find others who share a similar point of view. Just googling for Nigerian scam 419 culture brings up some interesting results, including http://slashdot.org/articles/05/10/21/138243.shtml and http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/blog/31063 ... Read those and browse for some more, very interesting, discussions on the subject.
Read this article http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3887493.stm on the BBC web site. It's very funny. :lol:
It's about a hobby called Scam Baiting - which is basically stringing the 419 scammers along, getting them to do rediculous things and sometimes conning THEM out of money in the process.
If you want to get in on scam baiting go to http://www.419eater.com
Edit: Funny you should mention police corruption - this is the address he wanted me to send it to:
Name : Eke James
Address : block (d) highway patrol barracks flat 17 :shock:
City : Ikeja
State : Lagos
Country : Nigeria
Zipcode : 23401
TheBrit: that's some funny sh*t!! :lol: "Church of the Painted Breast" LMAO
Sometimes I'm not even sure if the scammers know what they're talking about: one time I received a request to end the auction early with an instant payment of something like £300 for this xda iis with a broken screen, and that I must send it to this guy's cousin a.s.a.p. cos it was his birthday! :lol:
Oh guys if you haven't seen it already, check out http://www.amirtofangsazan.blogspot.com/ - don't sell a faulty laptop and leave your data on the hard disk! This has been making news around the world, over 2 million hits now and a Wikipedia article hahaha!
Neil.
OMFG - the fun never stops!!! I'm laughing so hard that I can't even go to bed... :lol:
It's a shame that the guy's been kicked off ebay now: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI..../search.dll?from=R40&satitle=6825578528&fvi=1
Hardly, he's exactly the kind of person that I don't want to see on ebay. I love all the newspaper coverage this story's been getting
What I mean is that guy is probably using ebay under a different name now, so it's hard for us to track him down, unless he forgets to wipe his hard disk again!
I have bought heaps of great things on eBay and I find it great but you should always be careful of things that seems to good to be true.

Anyone live in/travel to Sinagapore?

My sister will be going to Singapore with work in the near future and I have asked her to look into buying a Diver's Watch, probably a Citizen.
Are there many fakes that she should aviod? How expensive are watches in Singapore, someone told me that if a watch is 100UKP then it will be 100SGD which is about one sixth of the price. Are the real thing really that much cheaper? I was thinking of buying something like a Citizen MA9034-21E if that helps.
The last time I check, the S$ and £ is at a 3:1 rate, and such £100 and S$100 is a 1/3 difference. Or you've just went to a bad money changer?
There are certainly fakes goods to be avoided. But the rules of thumb is, if it is too cheap, probably it is fake (NOTE: does not apply the other way round - i.e. if it is expensive, doesn't mean it is not fake).
ANYWAY, since the watch you are looking for has the function, it would be difficult to find a fake to it (i.e. you can't fake a function). Check at the citizen website and look at the instruction manual, and be familiarized with the function (i.e. what happen when what is pressed.. etc).
My advise is, avoid Orchard Road (especially Lucky Plaza) area where thats a main tourist attraction area where you tend to get hammered with high price (usually real goods though). Check the price you get in UK to put a cap on the price you are willing to pay in Singapore.
There is a place, a quiet place off tourist's list, is a nice place that I would recommend, sells lots of Citizen watches. I can't remmeber its name, I think it starts with a B, it is opposite (across the road) SimLim Square (i.e. Singapore largest IT building).
Anyway, check on eBay as well, there are tons of Singapore sellers on eBay sellings watches as well.. compare the price there.
Thanks for that chap, can anyone else offer some additional info? Current prices etc. would be most welcome, but I understand this would likely mean people going out of their way to help.

Anyone cancel their plan and recieve google ETF? This IS the cheapest way to get a N1

Okay first off, this is a thread also to show all the people who bombarded me with smart comments about how i WILL definitely recieve a $200 ETF from T-Mobile for cancelling my plan for my nexus...I did not.
This isn't a mean thread either, I just wanted to let everyone know that this did work, So here i am even after being told that I would NEVER come back to say if it worked or not, because i was scared of the "flaming."
So here I am waiting for Google to charge me the $150 ETF, but it still hasn't happened and it has been over 2 months since i cancelled my T Mobile account.
So here I am (Lucky or maybe just waiting) with my nexus which now only has cost $212 without a contract
Order with T mobile contract for $179
Taxes and all that stuff brought it to $212
T MOBILE ETF $0
Google ETF 150??
Final price $212 (for now)
So has anyone cancelled and recieved the ETF yet? I cancelled and the T Mobile rep said to just hand the nexus back over to the fedex guy so maybe T mobile screwed up something but in the end im sure google knows that that phone is in use right now? But also this was close to the time when the nexus store was Closing or they ran out of phones so maybe that confused something? Or most likely, I am just waiting and will recieve it someday.
sassyness77 is pretty smart
someone loves sassyness77!
and it's his girlfriend <3
Nobody else likes you, because you're taking stuff at someone else's expense. When you cancelled T-Mobile, they charged back the commission that Google used to subsidize your phone. Google is out a few hundred bucks right now. You seem to think it's all okay because YOU didn't have to pay what you owe. That makes you a parasite, an unrepentant one at that since you seem happy to brag about getting away with it (for now at least).
This isn't howardforums, if you want to brag about exploiting companies, go there for a receptive audience.
Okay, whoa. I'm sorry you feel angry about this but to call me a parasite? Calm down. As if this truely hurts Google, all I did was find a smarter way to save money in all honesty.
ATnTdude said:
Nobody else likes you, because you're taking stuff at someone else's expense. When you cancelled T-Mobile, they charged back the commission that Google used to subsidize your phone. Google is out a few hundred bucks right now. You seem to think it's all okay because YOU didn't have to pay what you owe. That makes you a parasite, an unrepentant one at that since you seem happy to brag about getting away with it (for now at least).
This isn't howardforums, if you want to brag about exploiting companies, go there for a receptive audience.
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wtf you talking about. what do you think googles ERF is for? if google feels the loss they will charge them for it ... @OP
id wait 4 months before celebrating...thats when they will realize tmos not paying the subsidy
sassyness77 said:
Okay, whoa. I'm sorry you feel angry about this but to call me a parasite? Calm down. As if this truely hurts Google, all I did was find a smarter way to save money in all honesty.
Click to expand...
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Not sure how, but you're confusing dishonesty for intelligence. Parasite was the appropriate term, as what you did amounts to stealing and fraud.
sassyness77 said:
Okay, whoa. I'm sorry you feel angry about this but to call me a parasite? Calm down. As if this truely hurts Google, all I did was find a smarter way to save money in all honesty.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you do not like the term, don't be a parasite. You KNOW a Nexus One doesn't cost what you paid for it. You KNOW someone had to take that loss. It doesn't matter if they never charge you back, that's just your feeble attempt at justifying yourself. Off the top of my head, I can think of a few ways to dodge the charge (most of which are more clever than what you're taking pride in). I didn't do any of them because...wait for it...I'm not a parasite.
flybyme said:
wtf you talking about. what do you think googles ERF is for? if google feels the loss they will charge them for it ... @OP
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I am fully aware of what the ERF is for, apparently you don't, so I'll break it down for you.
1) HTC makes, sells and delivers a N1 to Google, HTC charges Google somewhere around, but probably somewhat less than, $530.
2) T-Mobile pays Google a commission for every 2 year contract signed over a N1. New activations pay more than upgrades, which is why the N1 costs more when upgrading your plan.
3) Google takes this commission, and gives it to you by subsidizing the phone down to as low as $180. That $350 difference comes from T-Mobile paying Google.
4) You buy the phone, and pay for the service. Google either gets paid immediately (and receives a chargeback if you cancel or downgrade) or doesn't get a check until you've had the service for 120 days (not sure which, since I'm not privy to the specifics of their agreement, but it's one or the other, probably the former as that's the general way the US cellphone market works).
5) T-Mobile, like most US carriers, uses a billing system which will automatically apply sales commissions on activations, and chargebacks on cancellations. As such, the moment you cancel, T-Mobile's systems take back their money.
6) This leaves Google out the amount of your subsidy ($250-$350), which is essentially the cost of the phone, minus what you paid for it($180-$280). Whether or not they (rightfully) charge you for that loss is irrelevant to the fact they took a material loss.
Welcome to how the real world works. For more info, go to college, or get a job.
ATnTdude said:
I am fully aware of what the ERF is for, apparently you don't, so I'll break it down for you.
1) HTC makes, sells and delivers a N1 to Google, HTC charges Google somewhere around, but probably somewhat less than, $530.
2) T-Mobile pays Google a commission for every 2 year contract signed over a N1. New activations pay more than upgrades, which is why the N1 costs more when upgrading your plan.
3) Google takes this commission, and gives it to you by subsidizing the phone down to as low as $180. That $350 difference comes from T-Mobile paying Google.
4) You buy the phone, and pay for the service. Google either gets paid immediately (and receives a chargeback if you cancel or downgrade) or doesn't get a check until you've had the service for 120 days (not sure which, since I'm not privy to the specifics of their agreement, but it's one or the other, probably the former as that's the general way the US cellphone market works).
5) T-Mobile, like most US carriers, uses a billing system which will automatically apply sales commissions on activations, and chargebacks on cancellations. As such, the moment you cancel, T-Mobile's systems take back their money.
6) This leaves Google out the amount of your subsidy ($250-$350), which is essentially the cost of the phone, minus what you paid for it($180-$280). Whether or not they (rightfully) charge you for that loss is irrelevant to the fact they took a material loss.
Welcome to how the real world works. For more info, go to college, or get a job.
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Click to collapse
Google changed their ERF because they felt they could take the loss vs customer backlash who would be forced to pay $750 for the nexus if they werent satisfied with Tmobile. It used to be $350, now its $150. Thats called business.
You do not know the deal that tmobile and google made with each other for the specific subsidy amounts. Tmobile pays google once the 120 days of service are up
FYI i have a B.S.S.E and a minor in business. Its not being a parasite for using valid methods to get a phone for cheap. I dont think you have any understand how business works but you just like to throw around things everyone already knows and thinks it helps your argument...but it doesnt
flybyme said:
You do not know the deal that tmobile and google made with each other for the specific subsidy amounts. Tmobile pays google once the 120 days of service are up
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Click to collapse
The "subsidy" is obvious, $250 to $350, because the subsidy is what YOU get. I never said what the "commission" is, and acknowledged I cannot know when the payment is sent, or the exact amount. Try to use the correct word when arguing with people.
...but since you've basically agreed that T-Mobile is financing everything, I rest my case.
ATnTdude said:
...but since you've basically agreed that T-Mobile is financing everything, I rest my case.
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Perfectly stated.....
This thread is going to turn into nothing but flaming... @Op, you knew that starting the thread.... Why? Why do it? Just to brag and wait for how many different ways people can call you out on "ripping off a nexus one?".....
I'm not hear to discuss the issue of getting an n1 for cheap, just to call you out on posting a thread KNOWING you'll get nothing but negative responses..... A lot of that going on on XDA lately and it's kinda sad.....
ATnTdude said:
The "subsidy" is obvious, $250 to $350, because the subsidy is what YOU get. I never said what the "commission" is, and acknowledged I cannot know when the payment is sent, or the exact amount. Try to use the correct word when arguing with people.
...but since you've basically agreed that T-Mobile is financing everything, I rest my case.
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The last part of that statement WAS to tell you when google got their payment.
Tmobile does NOT give google the payment if you cancel your contract. Thats when google steps in and gets their "commission" from you instead of tmo
When you buy the phone from google, you pay google 179. When you have been with tmobile for 120 days, tmobile pays google the rest of the money at their agreed upon rate (between 150-350, we dont know) if you cancel, google takes 150 to take their material losses.
Tmobile isnt footing anything, google is. and google makes sure they dont take a loss from this kind of situation. Note the phone's hardware costs $175, so the immediate material loss is already paid for when you buy the phone.
Congrats, you ripped someone off.
Your mistake was thinking anyone here would care. If you wanted "ZOMG DEWD GRATS BRAH!!!!!11one!!1" you're in the wrong forum.
Yadda yadda, someone is a db.. Let's just wave our hands until the Mods see and close this thread..
Due to the nature of the thread, I will close it down.

Angry at Google?

I think many of us (especially us Canadians who are still mostly N7-less) are pretty pissed off at how Google handled the pre-orders. I think many of you would agree that it's a reasonable expectation that pre-orders from the supplier should come before retailers are able to put theirs on the shelf. This is especially reasonable when you consider that we were charged 2-day shipping via UPS without any other alternative from Google. It has also been reported that some Canadians are getting 4-day shipping estimates even though they paid for supposed 2-day shipping.
I know that many of you will probably tell me to stop whining and just suck it up because they didn't break any promise as to the plain writing contractual agreement. But that doesn't mean that there are implicit expectations which should be met in good faith. This is especially true for a company that has a history of catering to its users and still holds the informal motto of "don't be evil".
I know that Google has always been a pretty open company and listened to feedback, and I still trust that they uphold these values. Is there anything we can do as a group of people to voice our opinions directly to them and let them know? I am sure that many of us are also developers hoping to get their first hands on the device as well. And I'm sure that Google would like to keep its developing community happy.
Addendum:
I just wanted to say why I wrote the post. This is was not meant to be a rant. If you re-read the OP, you will see that I am actually looking for a way to collectively voice to Google our discontent. That's because I believe Google to be a high-quality company that listens to its users. And I do WANT to order from Google Play again for the next device, but not before helping them improve their process by vocalizing our disappointments to them.
A rant in itself is useless, but what I am looking for is a way to let Google know where they can improve so we can enjoy a better Play store in the future.
no point of pre-ordering if we are not given any exclusivity ><
Stop whining.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Not mad at all, I am getting what I paid for.
It's funny when people say that they aren't upset that they over paid for a product that they'll get after people that didn't pre-order.
Sent from my Nexus 7
ibopm said:
I think many of us (especially us Canadians who are still mostly N7-less) are pretty pissed off at how Google handled the pre-orders. I think many of you would agree that it's a reasonable expectation that pre-orders from the supplier should come before retailers are able to put theirs on the shelf. This is especially reasonable when you consider that we were charged 2-day shipping via UPS without any other alternative from Google. It has also been reported that some Canadians are getting 4-day shipping estimates even though they paid for supposed 2-day shipping.
I know that many of you will probably tell me to stop whining and just suck it up because they didn't break any promise as to the plain writing contractual agreement. But that doesn't mean that there are implicit expectations which should be met in good faith. This is especially true for a company that has a history of catering to its users and still holds the informal motto of "don't be evil".
I know that Google has always been a pretty open company and listened to feedback, and I still trust that they uphold these values. Is there anything we can do as a group of people to voice our opinions directly to them and let them know? I am sure that many of us are also developers hoping to get their first hands on the device as well. And I'm sure that Google would like to keep its developing community happy.
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awww big baby didnt get his shiny nexus 7 before everyone else *cries*.
Wah. get over it.
Maybe you should launch Angry Birds at them?
I'm a little upset I paid for the shipping from the play store when I could have e just ordered from games top.. Not pay the shipping and get my n7 sooner. It's not that big of a deal for me but everyone will forget later today when they get their devices.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app
you got/will get it a week after everyone else. how will you manage to live?
Angry is probably too strong, but i'd have hoped (as with pre-ordering anything) that you'd at least get the thing delivered on launch day. Wouldn't expect to get it early necessarily and there are clear commercial reasons why this wouldn't go down well for a product thats being sold via third parties as well as from Google directly. And if the courier is struggling to keep up then its probably Google's fault for apparently giving regional exclusivity to any single company. After all, the likes of Amazon seem to cope quite well using multiple couriers and getting large volume launches of items out on time.
And certainly the communication side of things could've been alot better done than it has been, not to mention the customer services element for those who tried unsuccessfully to can pre-orders a week or more ago.
Isn't this what that OTHER thread is for?
ikn0wagh0st said:
Stop whining.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
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infamousjax said:
awww big baby didnt get his shiny nexus 7 before everyone else *cries*.
Wah. get over it.
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Can't tell if trolls or just stupid.
Did either of you even read the OP? He had an extremely valid point. We paid for required two-day shipping, supposedly in an effort to receive our products on or before the day everyone else could receive theirs. Of course this was not guaranteed by Google, but the fact that it didn't happen makes it unlikely that I'll ever preorder another Google product unless they adapt the same philosophy used elsewhere, like Amazon and Apple.
I followed the rumors since the 370T, preordered within minutes of availability, paid extra for mandatory expedited shipping, and it's finally being delivered tonight. Folks simply wandered into stores last week and picked theirs up. That's not how it should work. I'm not whining - I just believe Google should handle things differently in the future.
infamousjax said:
awww big baby didnt get his shiny nexus 7 before everyone else *cries*.
Wah. get over it.
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That's not my point as Jiggavolt has also explained. I would gladly have paid $5 or $10 shipping to get 3-week shipping rather than the 2-day shipping. But since we were required to purchase $20 (Canadian) 2-day shipping (which turned out to NOT be 2-DAY shipping AT ALL), I think it's fair to say that I feel a little cheated. Beyond that, there are implicit expectations that have not really been followed through or at least communicated. Even a simple apology to say that they were a bit slow would satisfy me.
_MetalHead_ said:
Isn't this what that OTHER thread is for?
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No, I'm seeking an avenue to communicate discontent with Google in a collective way.
ibopm said:
No, I'm seeking an avenue to communicate discontent with Google in a collective way.
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Ha! Since you stated that so eloquently, I just can't argue with it
Yeah, I could see being upset, actually. I ended up just calling all of the Gamestop stores within 15 miles (probably 6 of them) before I found one that had one in stock.
I would be angry too, but mainly about the 2 day shipping issue. However, I believe that UPS is at fault here if they cannot deliver within two days, not Google. I did not want to pay for shipping so I picked mine up at Staples on Sunday.
It's easy. Next time Google comes out with another device. DO NOT ORDER FROM THE PLAY STORE no matter what they say. You will get PLAYED again. They named it the PLAY store for a reason.
In my mind, Google has botched the entire process from start to finish.
1. Mystery specs - for the longest time, nobody could figure out if it had MHL or HDMI out, USB OTG, external storage, etc. Even media sites were conflicted on these features.
2. Saying that it will only be available on the Played store when it wasn't.
3. Shipping to retailers FIRST before fulfilling their own pre-orders hoping that retailers will hold them for an unspecified amount of time.
4. Shipping devices in no discernible order (FIFO, LIFO), etc.
5. Shipping 8GB orders first before 16GB, and then 16GB before those that also bundled a case with it.
6. 2 day shipping questionable... existing posted screenshots showing estimated time of delivery of 4+ days confirms this.
7. Canada gets brown back and US gets black back. WTF?
8. No able to cancel orders and no response from e-mails (at least for emails from Canada).
9. No specific launch date except mid-July. It's mid-July already, and some haven't even seen movement on their orders.
10. No explanation from Google over this fiasco.
The only redeeming feature was the price.
I don't know if this is Asus' fault or not, but Google is to blame. I think what Google should have done is hold shipping to retailers until they fulfilled their own Played store pre-orders first. None of this "everyone gets it at the same time" crap... WE OBVIOUSLY DIDN'T ORDER IT AT THE SAME TIME, so why go this route? If retailers don't have stock to sell, they can't sell it. However, if they do and it is taking up space, you can bet somebody is going to break the rule... esp. when there is no specific date to sell it.
The Played store is the premiere store for buying google branded devices. Google should make sure that when you order from there, you are at least guaranteed to get it the same time, if not earlier, than all other retailers at launch. Otherwise it is pointless to pay shipping when you could just walk to your local B&M and buy it right away for the same price - minus shipping. As it stands now, you would be a fool to order from the played store for the next device no matter how exclusive it will be.
The next time around, not ordering devices from the played store will be a good lesson for google.
If Steve Jobs were alive and this was an Apple product, he would have made it right by now. God rest his soul, he's probably laughing in his grave right now.
In the words of Justin Timberlake... Cry me a river.
I can't say I'm exactly thrilled over the situation. I found out Staples has them on the shelf right now. Meanwhile, I've received nothing from Google regarding my pre-order. No status update, no shipping notification, nothing. It stings a little bit to realize I'm paying more to get it later when you factor in the shipping cost... especially when I could have one within 5 minutes since Staples is just down the road...
I'm not exactly angry to go to war with Google over this, but this is definitely some serious food for thought for future purchases. I can't see myself possibly pre-ordering through Google again.
Anyone who pre-ordered with the expectation of receiving it before those who didn't pre-order, had the wrong expectations. I've been involved with many pre-orders and known of many many more. I've never seen one with that expectation.
However, you should expect to receive it on the generally available (GA) date. That's where this release broke down. Whether it's Google or Asus, it doesn't matter. The process failed.
However number 2. When I saw that pre-orders were paying for shipping and taxes, a flag went up for me. I decided to not pre-order as it would be cheaper for me to walk into a store and buy on the GA date. I saw little value in pre-ordering.

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