14 DAY TRIAL // Google is announcing the expansion of its Chrome Web Store internationally for the first time, adding support for 24 new countries. While the Web Store has been available to all Chrome users, it was only available in English and only to US developers at first.
Google opened it up to international developers, who had the ability to target only certain countries with their apps. However, even then, only US developers were able to receive payments for their applications in the Web Store.
Leading up to the international expansion, Google started offering localized, translated versions of the site in 41 languages. But it is only now that developers will be able to sell their apps to users outside the US.
"Nine months ago, we launched the Chrome Web Store in the United States," Rahul Roy-Chowdhury, product manager at Google, wrote. "Today, we’re expanding and making the store available in 24 more countries."
"If you are based in these initial 24 countries, you’ll find it much easier to discover and add new apps, extensions, and themes to Chrome, across a variety of categories—from games to news to productivity tools," he explained.
"In most countries, for apps that require a fee, you’ll now be able to complete the entire transaction in your local currency," he added.
While the Chrome Web Store hasn't been a huge success, Google is still working on it. Chrome's huge user base ensures that the Web Store gets a healthy amount of traffic.
Once the selection of apps becomes more interesting, more people will start using them and, hopefully for developers, will start paying for them as well. If Chromebooks start to sell in greater numbers, Web Store apps are guaranteed another influx of new users.
The Chrome Web Store has now become available in: Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.