Earlier last year, Google started testing a reward system in the Play Store called Play Points. It was available only in Japan and as of today, Google is bringing it to the United States. It is a strictly optional service and you can sign up for by heading over to the 'Play Points' section in the app's hamburger menu. You will now earn Play Points for all in-app purchases, subscriptions, movies, television shows, books, audiobooks, and music purchases. Additionally, downloading some free apps will net you some additional Play Points.
There are several tiers to the Play Points system namely, Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Platinum level. Each dollar you spend at the bronze tier nets you a point and that value goes up as you advance through tiers. There are even limited time only game events that will let you get more through “Special earn rates,” like spending $1 on apps or movies and collecting more points in return. Here's the breakdown of how it works.
- Bronze: You earn 1 point for every $1 spent, up to 2x for movie rentals and books during monthly events, and up to 4x for in-game purchases during weekly events.
- Silver: You earn 1.1 points for every $1, up to 3x for movie rentals and books during monthly events, and up to 4x for in-game purchases during weekly events. There's also a weekly prize worth up to 50 points.
- Gold: You earn 1.2 points for every $1, and up to 4x for movie rentals and books during monthly events and in-game purchases during weekly events. There's a weekly prize worth up to 200 points.
- Platinum: You earn 1.4 points for every $1, up to 5x for movie rentals and books during monthly events, and up to 4x for in-game purchases during weekly events. There's a weekly prize worth up to 500 points. You also get premium support from experienced customer service agents.
All this can be managed through a new “Play Points” tab accessible from Google Play’s navigation drawer. Your points total is noted in the top-right corner along with the current tier. Users can redeem points for special in-app items like characters, gems and more. You can also use Play Points for Google Play Credit and rent a movie or buy an audiobook. You can use your points to help charities of your choice from a rotating list of nonprofits, starting with Doctors Without Borders USA, Save the Children and the World Food Program USA. Play Points will be available to all users in the US starting next week.
