False Myths about Implementing IAP with Unity IAP for clients (freelancing) (-alternatives?)

Hi there!

I have to confess that for years I didn't need to deepen my (basic) knowledge of IAP - not a fan
of them, and most of the times I could delegate that part and focus on other parts of the project.

Premise: I only need a single item to be purchased, in both Android/Apple stores: a "Freemium to Complete"
(I'd also need to implement some sort of Redeem Code system, but it's out of topic for now)

Yet!

I'm now in a situation where time is both critical and I'd still love to learn more about IAP and if Unitu IAP is now the only recommended way.

One of my biggest concerns is that even as a Pro/Plus user, I'm freelancing, and I believe that both analytics and Unity IAP are going to be bound to my Unity ID.

So it's more a matter of management rather than implementation.

Could you please help me in debunking my assumptions?

1) Unity IAP forever binds my Unity ID to the game making use of it
2) 3rd party solutions on the Asset Store/GItHub are now obsolete
3) 3rd party solutions on the Asset Store/GitHub still require Unity IAP to work, while still making point 1 true
4) All fast-to-implement alternatives are no longer maintained because Unity IAP made them redundant.
5) It's not possible to implement IAP rapidly without having to rewrite most of the code, for each platform.
6) Unity IAP is free to use withn no extra costs
7) It's advisable in such cases to setup a Unity ID for the client so that it can potentially decouple from me at any time.

I feel bad for asking, since I agree I shouldn't have left this hole open for so much time, but I'm humbly asking for some help or direction if you could please provide some

 

I will attempt to answer your questions

1) Sorry I don't understand, can you elaborate? If you use a different UnityID, you'll need to publish a separate app on the app stores. The products are associated with your game. Multiple developers can work on the same game.

2) Which ones? Why obsolete?

3) Which ones?

4) Which alternatives, are you referring to developing using the native API for the corresponding stores? The Apple and Google API's are not going anywhere, Unity IAP uses them!

5) Not true, IAP is already cross platform, you can target either iOS or Android by making a single selection in the Editor.

6) Correct

7) Who is the client? Do you mean end users playing your game? And define what you mean by decouple.

It might be easier to ask what your goal is here. Have you published a game yet?

 

I believe I used the wrong approach to make questions, if I'm getting more questions than answers

I was looking for answerw in the form of "Yes, that's true because: explanation/ No, that's false because: explanation", I'm not asserting anything, if not to get my doubts cleared.

1) Unity IAP forever binds my Unity ID to the game making use of it
> If you use a different UnityID, you'll need to publish a separate app on the app stores.
>> Are you referring to the package name? I meant the Unity ID:

So, I was asking if setting up Unity IAP (a Unity Service, bound to my Unity ID) is also permanently binding my (freelancer) account to the game I'm publishing (for a client, which may or may not like the idea of such dependency). I'm assuming it does. So I may need to set up an account specifically for him. Just double checking.

2) 3rd party solutions on the Asset Store/GItHub are now obsolete
>Which ones? Why obsolete?
>>Expected answer: "Yes/No, here's a list"
Rewording: Are 3rd party solution leveraging IAP, but not using Unity IAP obsolete? I remember about UniBill, Prime31 and other assets that haven't been receiving updates for quite some time. Or others that got deprecated.

3) I'm actually making that question to the community, hopefully to get a list of asset not specifically binding Unity Services (IAP, Analytics) to my Unity ID (Unity license as a freelancer)

4) All fast-to-implement alternatives are no longer maintained because Unity IAP made them redundant.
>Which alternatives, are you referring to developing using the native API for the corresponding stores? The Apple and Google API's are not going anywhere, Unity IAP uses them!
>> No, I was referring to similar services/frameworks offering similar services to the Account-bound Unity Services

7) It's advisable in such cases to setup a Unity ID for the client so that it can potentially decouple from me at any time.
> Who is the client? Do you mean end users playing your game? And define what you mean by decouple.
>> The client is the director of a pretty renown Italian international museum also featured in an Assassin's Creed game.
I generally delegated the IAP part but times are a bit strict and the rest is confidential - yet everything is under control and deadlines will be met.
By decoupling I mean that at some point the museum (or, a company working for it) will be able to keep using the Unity IAP service without requiring access to my account.

The goal is actually easy to implement, as it's just to create a single IAP to unlock the final chapter of a freemium app.
The implementation is almost trivial, there's plenty of documentation about it.

Yet, I'd have loved to get more info about the service and how to manage it even after the product is not under my direct control.
That's why I needed some official answers to that list of questions - to help me decide which are the options, and take a decision accordingly.
I'm just assessing the options, since I haven't been requested to handle IAP for plenty of years, until literally a few hours ago.

 

Thank you for clarifying your questions. Who owns the Google Play account to which the game will be published? Generally this would be your client who would need to add you to their organization as a user. You could then publish to Google Play on their behalf, if I understand correctly. I would have to check on this part though, I've personally only published to my own Google Play developer account. At any rate, then you could "decouple" later (they would remove you as a user in their organization). Your client owns the game, and is the organization receiving the Google Play income for the IAP products. IAP revenue is paid from the respective stores (Google and Apple). Regarding your other questions, you would want to contact the developers of Prime31 and other assets about their current plans, we are not associated with them. If they are using Unity IAP, you would want to ask them if they are using the most current version. If they are not using Unity IAP, I would think that they would be considered a valid alternative to Unity IAP. These links may help also https://docs.unity3d.com/Manual/UnityIAPGoogleConfiguration.html and https://docs.unity3d.com/Manual/UnityIAPAppleConfiguration.html . On Apple, they would need to add you to their Apple Provisioning Profile.

 

I have full access to all the publishing accounts, for obvious reasons, since I have to set up the products and do some closed testing.

I'm already getting in touch with several 3rd party asset devs, but I was hoping in getting some help from the community, with names, alternatives and possibly good practices, maybe even from the developers themselves.
This makes the whole process a lot longer.

Yet, could you please confirm that by using the Unity IAP service bound to my account makes all revenue tracking non-transferable to a hypothetical client-owned(museum) Unity account?

 

The revenue is associated to the Google Play account to which the game is published.

 

These links may help:

https://docs.unity3d.com/Manual/OrgsManagingyourOrganization.html

https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/2528691?hl=en

 

Thanks - I still believe these are not exactly the answers I was looking for, tho.

Still, is there a way to use Unity's IAP API without having to share sensible data with Unity?
Can someone opt out from Unity Services tracking sales and statistics - in the same way other assets do, providing APIs to manage IAP, without passing through Unity Servers?

Can users(devs) opt-out from sharing data with Unity, or is the data sharing/tracking part of Unity's IAP?

 

IAP data does not pass through any Unity servers, we are a pass through service for the app stores. An IAP transaction goes directly from the device to the app store, and back. What data sharing are you referring to? All individuals in the Organizational project have visibility into the Unity Dashboard, if that is what you mean. Project Owners and Managers can view financial data and change service flags, Users cannot.