Google will be paid

Google is changing the way its Android apps are licensed in Europe, leading the company to take for the first time a license fee for Play Store and other Google applications.

The amendments come in response to a July decision by the European Commission, which fined the $5 billion company for violations of the antitrust and ordered it to ban the illegal “linking” of Crome and to seek applications for Android.

Google didn't historically have a monetary obligation for Android and its apps.

The central Android operating system will remain free and open source, but if phone producers and tablets want Google and Play apps, they will have to pay a license fee in Europe.

Play and many of the other Google applications, such as Gmail, Google Maps and YouTube, will be included together under a payment license agreement.

Chrome, in a package of Google Search apps, can be added to the top of that free deal, but not yet known.

It is not yet clear what the fees will be. But in one way or another, users have to pay if they want any of these Google services.

This is a big job for Google, which could lose a large income income and a large number of customers.