Is it possible to debug locally Google Play's in-app billing in Android Studio?

I am getting this error testing in-app subscription products locally.

authentication is required. you need to sign in to your google account

I was able to check the the inventory for the product but shouldn't I also be able to purchase it?

There are a number of posts about why this error might occur which I thought were addressed:

• the product is released in the beta channel with in-app billing enabled
• i am logged into Play Store with a test user licensed account on the device.

Is the only way to test actual purchases via the beta/alpha channels - not straight from android studio. This post suggests it possible (see screen shot)

http://developer.android.com/google/play/billing/billing_testing.html#billing-testing-test

The following worked for me launching from my IDE (Android Studio)

1) Go to your https://play.google.com/apps/publish/ Under 'Developer' Account/Settings/Account details/License Testing

2) Add the 'Default Google Play' email address that corresponds with the device you are testing

Source: https://engineering.memrise.com/faster-in-app-billing-subscriptions-testing-8e68551b4e2f