Digital River and MyCommerce insolvency (January 2025)

What happened: the merchant-of-record and checkout provider missed scheduled vendor payments in July 2024, extended payment terms from 15 to 60 days in August 2024, added platform, support and chargeback fees in September 2024, then announced insolvency and suspended service in January 2025; developers reported balances from $5,000 to more than $150,000 trapped (secondary: Freemius guide).

The warning signs, in order

1. A missed payout. 2. Payment terms lengthened without a product reason. 3. New fees introduced mid-contract. 4. Account deactivation with no explanation.

A seller who moved at step 2 lost weeks; one who waited for step 4 lost the balance.

If your checkout provider shows these signs

• Export customer records, licence keys and subscription data immediately; keep licensing under your own control.
• Notify subscribers and move new sales to a second provider before the old one stops paying.

Verified alternatives in the registry (category 24)

• Paddle: 5% + $0.50 all-inclusive as merchant of record (official).
• Creem: 3.9% + $0.40, no international surcharge, tax handled in 50+ countries (official).
• Dodo Payments: 4% + $0.40 (official).
• Polar: 5% + $0.50 falling to 3.4% + $0.30 at scale, plus payout fees of $2 a month when active and 0.25% + $0.25 per payout; identity checks and account reviews apply (official).
• Lemon Squeezy: 5% + $0.50 with surcharges (secondary).
• Stripe with Managed Payments: 2.9% + $0.30 plus 3.5% for merchant-of-record handling (official).

See the [payments category](../category/24.html).