Google Play has rolled out a rewards programme called Play Points and it is live in South Africa. It’s available to all users from the left menu, which prompts you to join for free.

The company says users will earn points on games, apps, movies, and more, including in-game items and subscriptions. You also earn Play Points when you download featured free games and apps, and weekly points will boost your earning rate on select games and movies.

The tier system has four levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. You earn 1 Play Point for every R17 spent. In-game point boosts earn you up to 4x points weekly. You earn 2x points when you rent a movie or buy a book during monthly events.

Once you reach 150 points, you get onto Silver, and then book and movie purchases earn you 3x more points, with weekly prizes on this tier.

You get to Gold with 600 points, and you then qualify to earn 1.2 point per R17 spent. The movie and book rewards are 4x points on this level, including weekly prizes.

Lastly, Platinum level is earned when you reach 3000 points. And as expected, earn rates are higher: 1.4x points per R17 spent; 5x points for movies and books, weekly prizes and then Premium support from dedicated agents.

Google said it is partnering with developers of some of the top apps and games on Google Play so that you can redeem points for special in-app items like characters, gems and more. You can also use Play Points for Google Play Credit.

Mariam Abdulahi, Director for Africa Platform Partnerships for Android and Play says, “More than 2 billion people in 190 countries use Google Play to discover blockbuster movies, apps that help you be more productive, and books that inspire imagination.”

To show our appreciation, Google created a rewards programme called Google Play Points that lets you earn points and rewards for the ways you already use Google Play. Over the past two years, millions of people have joined the programme in countries where it’s available. From this week, South Africans will be able to sign up too.”

I signed up a short while ago by visited the Play Store, tapping on menu and “Play Points”. I love the gamification aspect on Google Maps as a Local Guide, I think this will be no different.

Sign up here: https://play.google.com/store/points/enroll