What’s new in Google Play Store 6.8.21?
If you just look at the official changelog, this new update looks like one of those ho-hum releases that has little to offer except some bug fixes and other tweaks to improve performance. And it’s true that this version does come with the usual string of general improvements. But there’s a lot more going on with Play Store 6.8.21.
Depending on your geographic region, phone model, carrier and Android OS version (and if you aren’t in the habit of regularly doing manual Play Store updates by downloading the APK files), chances are good that the version of Play Store your device is running right now is 6.7.X (I know mine still was, as of last night, anyway).
The step up from 6.7 to 6.8 happened quietly, without a lot of fanfare, but it’s extremely important for all Android users to get their devices up to Play Store v. 6.8.X if they want to use the new Family Sharing feature from Google Play.
Family Library in Play Store 6.8.21
Back in May at their I/O conference, Google announced July 2 as the official “go live” date for the highly anticipated Shared Family Library in Google Play. Well, that date has come and gone and there haven’t been many reports of users having access to the Family Sharing feature just yet, suggesting that it’s going live in batches.
However, what’s fairly certain is that having Play Store 6.8 will be a prerequisite for having the Family Sharing option available. That’s why we recommend updating now using our APK download, so your device is all ready to go if your location/device comes up in the queue for activation.
The Google Play Shared Library has been a long time coming. Android users have been demanding it for years, considering that competitors like Apple and even Amazon have allowed families to share paid content for a long time.
Rumors that it would finally come to fruition have been buzzing since around September of last year. The idea of having “families” was tested in Google Play Music, where families could buy a family plan and save a substantial amount of money on streaming music and ad-free YouTube Red. Finally, Google announced that the families would be able to share paid apps and games starting July 2.
How does Play Store Family Sharing work?
Basically, once you have Play Store 6.8.21 installed and you’re batched to have the feature activated, if you go to your “Account” in “Settings”, there will be an option to create a family, including the “Family Manager” who is in charge of the family payment method.
If one person in the family bought a premium app or game from the Play Store using the family payment method, then it will be available for all the other family members to use without having to pay for it again. For the moment, this only applies to apps and games, although it’s possible that Google will expand it in the future to include e-books, movies, etc. It does not apply to in-app purchases.
Download Play Store 6.8.21
This stable release requires 16.34 MB of disk space and is compatible with Android 4.0 and up.
First, ensure that you have the “Unknown sources” option turned on in your Android’s security settings; without this, the Play Store APK that you download from us will be blocked when you try to install it.
Next, tap the Play Store 6.8.21 APK download link included in this post, tap “Save file”, and wait for the file to download. Open the file by either tapping the “Complete” notification or using a file manager application. In most cases, this will open the file in Android Package Installer.
All you have to do now is tap “Install” and accept the permissions that Play Store requires. The APK file will be installed on your device and overwrite the previous version you had, just like what would happen if you waited for the automatic update.
Once the installation is finished, the next time you check your version number or open the Play Store, it should be the new 6.8 version you just installed. If you’re interested in Family Sharing, definitely check your “Account Settings” periodically to see when the feature becomes available to you.