In the last couple of versions of Google Duo, Cody has found evidence of rewards for inviting friends to install the app (v37 and v38). The scheme now appears to have gone live for users in the Philippines, potentially ahead of being launched in other regions.

The video calling app clearly isn't as popular as Google had hoped, but maybe bribes entice more users to install it. Our last APK Teardown revealed rewards such as covering some of the costs of data usage, as well as actual cash rewards paid through the app formally known as Tez, India's version of Google Pay. We might have expected the rewards scheme to start off in India, then, but the Philippines is the first that we know of.

A lovely blue present.

According to a Duo support page, users in the Philippines who are customers of Smart or Globe will be rewarded with 100MB of data credited to their accounts. An 'Invite friends' link can be found at the top of the contacts list. As long as the recipient installs and activates the latest version of Duo, and it's their first time on that number, a reward will be issued. Notifications will be sent when a reward has been earned, which will then be automatically applied by the carrier. A total of 10 invite rewards can be earned per user, that's a total of 1GB up for grabs.

The terms and conditions apply only to the Philippines at the time of writing, but we can probably expect the scheme to roll out to other regions (like India) in due course. Whether it will be limited to countries in Asia isn't yet clear.

UPDATE: 2018/11/07 5:47am PST BY STEPHEN SCHENCK

The Google Duo rewards scheme has now rolled out in India as well, and in that region, the prizes are even better. Instead of the free data on offer in the Philippines, users in India can get cash rewards. All you have to do is have is invite someone, and when they make their first call you'll get an email about your bonus. You'll need to have an Indian phone number and bank account to redeem the reward, and you will also have to sign into Google Pay with the same account you use for Duo.

Source: Google

UPDATE: 2018/12/20 1:49pm PST BY STEPHEN SCHENCK

We hope you Duo fans got your rewards while you could, because these offers are going away soon. Google has just updated its support docs to indicate that this program expires on December 31 — or "until supplies last," which could be even sooner.

Source: Google (1), (2)