M9: monetisation decision - one-time paid, no billing code, verified in release APK

2026-10-14 17:40:29 +02:00
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+# Monetisation
+
+## The decision
+
+**File Manager is a one-time paid app.** No ads, no subscription, no in-app purchases, no
+free tier and no trial. The price lives on the Play listing, not in the build — so there is
+no Billing client, no `com.android.vending.BILLING` permission, and no purchase code in the
+APK.
+
+That is not a detail: it is what keeps the "no network permission, nothing leaves your
+device" claim true in the *shipped artefact* rather than merely in the source.
+
+## Price
+
+| | Value |
+|---|---|
+| Base price | **€4.49** |
+| Launch price | **€2.29** (≈49% off) for the first **14 days** |
+| Model | One-time purchase, all features, no unlocks |
+
+Both are set in the Play Console under *Products › App pricing*. Nothing about them is in
+this repository, and nothing about them needs to be: changing the number is a Console edit,
+not a release.
+
+### Why €4.49
+
+- **Anchors.** The only comparable *pure-paid* file manager on Play is MiXplorer Silver at
+  **€6.99**. Everything else is free with ads or free with a €3–5 one-time unlock (Solid
+  Explorer, FX+, X-plore, Cx). €4.49 sits below the premium paid rival and above the
+  free tier's unlock price, which is where "no ads, no account, no network" earns its keep.
+- **Scope.** A file manager is a daily-use tool across every app on the device, not a
+  single-purpose utility. A one-shot photo-deduplication tool is reasonably priced at
+  €2.99; a file manager does more, more often.
+- **Headroom.** It is much easier to discount a €4.49 base than to raise a €2.49 one. The
+  base price anchors future sales; the sale cannot anchor the base.
+
+### Why a launch price
+
+A temporary lower price gives early adopters a reason to commit and — more importantly —
+produces the first reviews, which a paid app needs far more than a free one does. Once the
+window closes, the price returns to €4.49. The same discount can be repeated for any later
+milestone; the base price never has to move.
+
+**Keep it honest:** the launch price is a genuine time-boxed reduction, not a permanent
+"discount" — a base price that never applies is just a two-tier price with extra steps.
+
+### ⚠️ This decision is irreversible in one direction
+
+Play's own wording: *"You can change your app from paid to free. Once your app has been
+offered for free, the app can't be changed to paid."* So:
+
+- The price **must be set before the first upload**.
+- Paid → free remains possible later if the strategy changes.
+- Free → paid never does.
+
+## Why not the alternatives
+
+| Option | Rejected because |
+|---|---|
+| Free with ads | The product's whole pitch is "no clutter". Ads in a file manager are also a privacy problem — every ad SDK wants `INTERNET` and an advertising ID. |
+| Free with a one-time unlock (IAP) | Would add the Billing client and the `BILLING` permission, require purchase-state plumbing and a restore path, and make the app's own "works offline forever" promise contingent on a Play check. |
+| Subscription | Nothing here is a recurring service. Users are paying for a tool they already own a copy of. |
+| Free | M9 exists to fund the work. See the irreversibility note: once free, never paid. |
+
+## What is in the build — verified, not assumed
+
+```bash
+# None of these may return anything:
+grep -rniE 'billing|vending' app/src gradle/ app/build.gradle.kts
+$ANDROID_HOME/build-tools/36.0.0/aapt2 dump permissions \
+  app/build/outputs/apk/release/app-release.apk | grep -i billing
+```
+
+Checked 2026-10-14 against the release APK: **no billing reference in the source, no Billing
+dependency in the version catalog, no `com.android.vending.BILLING` permission, and no
+`INTERNET`**. See [PLAY_RELEASE_CHECKLIST](PLAY_RELEASE_CHECKLIST.md) step 7.
+
+## Console steps
+
+1. Create a **payments profile** (identity, tax, bank details) for the developer account.
+2. In the Play Console, on the app's *App pricing* page, set the base price to **€4.49**
+   (Play fills in local equivalents; review the suggested prices rather than accepting
+   them blindly).
+3. Set the **launch price of €2.29**, and diarise changing it back after 14 days.
+4. Do all of the above **before the first upload**.