What happens to in-app subscriptions when an app is unpublished from Google Play?

Question

I am about to unpublish my app from the Google Play Store because the service is going to be shut down.

My users are currently paying subscriptions (monthly or yearly) for the service, subscriptions that auto-renew.

I am wondering what will happen to these users from the moment the app is unpublished: will subscriptions be automatically cancelled and renewal prevented?

Thanks a lot.

Answer 1

I've got the answer to my own question. In short, when you unpublish an app, the existing subscriptions are not cancelled and, therefore, they continue to renew until cancelled by the user or by the developer via the Google Play Developer API.

According to the Developer Console help page:

When you unpublish an app, existing users can still use your app and receive app updates. Your app won’t be available for new users to find and download on Google Play.

This paragraph doesn't specifically cover the case of subscriptions, but my experience just confirmed it: I have unpublished my app and subscriptions keep renewing.