Last month my beloved Sony Tablet S suffered a “little” accident and the screen got broken.

I had it insured so I returned it to the shop.

There was a distinct possibility of the device being replaced other then repaired. That was fine by me with an exception:

- Will I loose all the apps I’d bought trough google play?

This was a legit concern since this was the first time it had happened to me, and my first thoughts where that probably apps are assigned to devices, and thus the apps i’d bought where assigned to the “broken tablet” and I could not re-install them in the “new device”!

I browsed the web, got advice from android friends, and found no answer to my doubts. So After a while I contacted google play support.

Since this was not a straight forward quest, I’ve decided to share Google’s answer so it may help others.

Their answer was fast, and made my day:

My question to the Google Play Support Team:

“Hello

I have a problem:

I’ve returned to the manufacturer one of my android devices because of warranty issues. If instead of repairing it, they choose to replace it, what will happen to all the apps I’ve purchased via Google play?

- From the users point of view (me) this is not the acquisition of a new device, its the same device!

What shall I do? Please advice.

Cheers!

MAC!!”

Google Play Support Team answer:

“Hi,

Thanks for contacting me – I’d be happy to clarify this issue for you. Basically, your application purchases are tied to your Google Account and can be installed an unlimited number of times on any device. For example, if you remove “My Favorite Game” to save memory, you can reinstall it at a later date with no charge simply by visiting the My Apps section of the Google Play Store app on your device.

If you change devices, you can install previous purchases by signing into your device with the same Google Account you used on your previous device.

I hope I was able to answer your questions, but please let me know if you need further clarification on Google Play or the association between apps and accounts. 

Sincerely,

C(..)
The Google Play Support Team”

“If you change devices, you can install previous purchases by signing into your device with the same Google Account you used on your previous device.” – This was indeed very nice to know.

Android rocks!