Glossary
Definitions for every concept on TestHive — 38 terms across Google Play, economy, roles, mechanics, and anti-fraud.
#
- 168 baselineGoogle Play
- 168 = 12 testers × 14 days, the tester-day count Google Play uses to validate Closed Testing completion. The configuration is fixed — neither 24 × 7 nor 12 × any-other-N satisfies Google's check.
A
- Active memberRoles
- A Studio member in good standing — opted in, has not left or been removed, and counted toward the Studio's tester capacity. Active members can be dispatched daily tasks; inactive members cannot.
- ApprovalMechanics
- Developer action confirming a tester's daily check-in screenshot is valid. Approvals release that day's T-Coin from the escrow pool to the tester's pending balance. Rejections leave the day's allotment in the pool for redistribution.
- Audience typeMechanics
- A Campaign-level setting controlling who can take the work: mixed (any), studio_only (whole-studio teams), or individual_only (solo testers only). Cannot be changed after publish.
- Auto-confirmMechanics
- Automatic settlement after 3 days of developer inactivity past the 14-day test window. Triggers if the developer forgets to manually confirm 'app launched'. Testers still receive their full earned T-Coin.
B
- Bonus poolEconomy
- 25% of the tester reward pool, reserved for full-attendance testers only. Distributed at settlement based on level multipliers. Partial-attendance testers don't qualify — their share redistributes to those who completed all 14 days.
- BoostMechanics
- Optional post-publish action to add more T-Coin to a Campaign already live. Increases tester payouts, doesn't retroactively change settled days. Has the same 20% platform fee on the boost amount.
C
- CampaignMechanics
- A single Closed Testing engagement — one developer's app being tested by 12 testers over 14 days. The unit of work, payment, and reporting on TestHive.
- Closed TestingGoogle Play
- Google Play's mandatory testing track for new apps. Requires 12 unique testers daily-opted for 14 consecutive days before production release is permitted.
- Completed AppsEconomy
- Monotonic counter of full-attendance 14-day Closed Testing windows a tester has finished. Drives level progression (C → SSSS). Once earned, never decreases.
D
- Daily check-inMechanics
- Tester's once-per-day submission proving they used the app: a screenshot uploaded through TestHive. Triggers approval flow on the developer side.
- Daily poolEconomy
- 75% of the tester reward pool, paid out per approved daily check-in. Each tester earns roughly equal portions baseline; at settlement, level multipliers redistribute it weighted by experience.
- DeveloperRoles
- User role that publishes Closed Testing Campaigns on TestHive. Same TestHive account can also act as a Tester — there's no separate signup.
E
- EscrowEconomy
- TestHive's payment-holding mechanism. When a developer pays for a Campaign, T-Coin sits in escrow and is released to testers only as the developer approves daily check-ins.
F
- Fingerprint clusterAnti-fraud
- Anti-fraud signal: when multiple TestHive accounts share device/browser/network signatures above a threshold, they're treated as one identity. Used to detect sock-puppet testers.
- Full attendanceMechanics
- Tester completion of all 14 days of a Campaign with each day approved by the developer. Required to receive bonus pool earnings. Partial attendance still earns the per-day baseline.
K
- KarmaEconomy
- TestHive's free internal economy. New signups receive 170 Karma — exactly enough to fund one Closed Testing Campaign (168 to testers + 2 platform fee). Karma cannot be withdrawn to PayPal.
L
- Level multiplierEconomy
- Per-tester reward weight applied at settlement based on experience level: C 1.00× / B 1.02× / A 1.05× / S 1.10× / SS 1.15× / SSS 1.20× / SSSS 1.30×. Higher levels earn proportionally more per Campaign.
O
- Open TestingGoogle Play
- Google Play's optional public-beta track. Anyone with the link can install. Different from Closed Testing — Open is voluntary and unlimited audience; Closed is mandatory and 12 × 14.
P
- package_nameGoogle Play
- The Android application identifier (e.g., `com.example.app`) used by Google Play to uniquely identify your app. Cannot change once published. TestHive's gate 1 enforces one active Campaign per package_name.
- Pending balanceEconomy
- Tester earnings that have been approved but not yet settled. Visible to the tester but not withdrawable until the Campaign reaches settlement (day 14 + dev confirmation, or auto-confirm at day 17).
- Platform feeEconomy
- TestHive's 20% take on each paid Campaign at publish time. Covers tester recruitment, payment processing, fraud insurance, and platform operations. One-time per Campaign — never compounds or recurs.
- Play ScraperAnti-fraud
- TestHive's 3rd of 4 fraud gates: verifies a tester's submission against Google Play's public listing data to confirm the package_name and testing track match the developer's claims.
R
- RechargeEconomy
- Buying T-Coin via PayPal. Four fixed packages: $10/$25/$50/$100. PayPal payments take up to 24 hours to clear (100% manual review). Larger packages include 4-9% bonus T-Coin.
- Risk scoreAnti-fraud
- Internal numeric signal combining fingerprint, IP geolocation, submission patterns, and account history. Above 60 may trigger withdrawal hold or Campaign appeal. Specific weights kept private to prevent gaming.
S
- SettlementMechanics
- End-of-Campaign accounting that releases T-Coin from escrow to tester pending → withdrawable balances. Triggered by developer confirming app launched, OR auto-confirms 3 days after the 14-day window if developer is silent.
- Sock-puppetAnti-fraud
- Fraudulent multi-account scheme where one person controls multiple TestHive identities to look like distinct testers. TestHive's fingerprint cluster + IP correlation + Play Store account check detect and block these.
- StudioRoles
- A permanent team of up to 12 (or 25 with Expanded tier) testers organized under one Owner. Studios take Campaigns as a unit, share rewards by configurable share percentages.
- Studio OwnerRoles
- User who created and manages a Studio. Dispatches daily tasks to members, controls Studio Wallet distribution, sets share percentages. Cannot keep more than 10% automatically without member consent.
- Studio WalletEconomy
- Group balance owned by the Studio (not the Owner personally). Campaign earnings settle here first, then the Owner distributes to individual members by share%. Distinct from any individual member's personal wallet.
- super_adminRoles
- Reserved support role on TestHive (≤ 1 person). Handles only 4 case types: PayPal top-up review, withdrawal processing, high-risk appeal arbitration, last-resort Campaign rejection. All daily Campaign flow is self-service.
T
- T-CoinEconomy
- TestHive's paid currency. 100 T-Coin = $1 USD. Bought via PayPal ($10 minimum top-up), withdrawable to PayPal once balance crosses 2,000 T-Coin (= $20).
- Tester levelRoles
- 7-tier progression based on Completed Apps count: C (0) / B (1+) / A (3+) / S (10+) / SS (30+) / SSS (100+) / SSSS (300+). Higher levels earn level-multiplier bonuses at settlement.
- tester-dayGoogle Play
- One unique tester active for one day. Closed Testing's required 168 = 12 testers × 14 days. Inactive testers (didn't open the app that day) don't count toward the day's total.
- testing_urlGoogle Play
- Public Google Play URL of a Closed Testing track (e.g., `https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.example.app`). Required field when publishing a Campaign. Validated by Play Scraper at publish time.
V
- ViolationAnti-fraud
- Counted incident of a tester missing a daily check-in beyond grace window. Each violation deducts 30 Karma. Repeated violations slow Campaign matchability and may lead to account suspension.
W
- WithdrawEconomy
- Move T-Coin from withdrawable balance to PayPal. Minimum 2,000 T-Coin ($20). Processing is 100% manual with 3-5 business day SLA. The platform fee was taken at publish — no additional fee on withdrawal.
- Withdrawable balanceEconomy
- Settled T-Coin available for PayPal withdrawal. Distinct from pending balance (mid-Campaign earnings). Becomes withdrawable after Campaign settlement releases pending → withdrawable.