It does not matter that Apple's antics are currently in the middle of being reviewed by nearly every regulator in the world or being seen as the nasty end of monopolistic practice; Google has thought "we'll be having some of that."

Google has been telling developers selling digital goods inside their Android apps all need to switch to Google Play billing, or they will be locked out of the Play Store. This has technically always been the rule at Google Play, and Google didn't enforce it.

In September 2021, it told developers that they had to get on board. The company then delayed the transition by letting app developers request a six-month extension, which ran out on March 31.

Amazon and Barnes & Noble are complying with Google's rules. Amazon can sell whatever physical products it wants on its billing system, but its Audible division sells digital purchases, which means it must use Google Play.

Amazon has responded by pulling digital book purchases from the Android Audible app. A new support page entry says, "Starting with the Audible for Google Play Android app version 3.23, purchasing titles with a debit or credit card in the app is no longer supported."

While you can no longer make a la carte purchases, Amazon decided to let Audible subscriptions run through Google Play. Android app signups before April 1 go through Amazon, and after April 1, they'll need to go through Google.