Love it or hate it, a huge number of people are more familiar with PayPal than with any other online payment system. And so the Android Market may soon seem more much accessible to them, as a new rumor indicates Google is about to reach a payment-related agreement with eBay.
That would represent a significant about-turn on Google’s part. For a long time, the search giant did all it could to downplay the importance of PayPal and promote Google Checkout, linking to its service from Google.com and offering shoppers significant discounts.
Still, Scott Moritz reported earlier today, "Google has finally enlisted eBay’s PayPal service and is preparing to launch the payment system on its Android Market later this month. Sources familiar with the situation say the deal is all but sealed, with an announcement coming as early as Oct. 26 during the PayPal developers’ conference in San Francisco."
Stay tuned, then, as that semi-deadline, combined with the approach of the 2010 holiday season, doesn’t leave a lot to chance.
Unfortunately, one area where the details remain fuzzy is the subject of revenue splitting and that sort of thing. Moritz’s sources indicated that "economics" were a point of some contention.
Google would appear to be in the weaker bargaining position, though, if it’s finally making friends with eBay and PayPal after fighting them for all this time.