China Economic Weekly reporter Zhou Ruifeng
According to Mark Gurman from Bloomberg, Apple plans to make changes to its App Store in the European Union in the coming weeks due to the upcoming Digital Markets Act (DMA), which will take effect in the EU; Quota; Divide into two; Quota;. This means that before enabling the app sideloading feature, the App Store in the EU region will be separated from other regions. Apple hopes to meet legal requirements through this adjustment.
(Apple official website screenshot)
According to DMA requirements, Apple needs to take measures before March 7, 2024, including opening the App Store and implementing interoperability between iMessage and Android devices. Apple must complete these changes before the deadline.
Recently, Apple CEO Tim Cook met with Margrethe Vestager, the EU antitrust chief. Vestag stated that Apple has an obligation to allow users to install third-party app stores and side loading apps. Moreover, Apple has an obligation to enable developers to promote their products outside of the App Store and use third-party payment systems. It is expected that DMA will force Apple to make a series of significant changes to the way App Store, FaceTime, and Siri work in Europe.
In addition to making adjustments in the EU region, Apple has also made significant changes to its App Store policy in the United States. Now, developers are allowed to guide users to purchase digital products through non App Store channels. Apple allows applications to provide links to developer websites as an alternative to in app purchases. Developers need to apply for permission to purchase external links from StoreKit in order to provide this option.
In order to maintain the privacy and security of the App Store, developers need to meet some requirements. Apple will charge a fee of 27% for user purchases or first year subscriptions made through external purchase links, instead of 30%. For the second year of subscription, the commission will be reduced to 12%, which is lower than the 15% fee charged from the second year or longer subscription through in app purchases. Applications participating in the App Store Small Business Program will receive a 12% commission. These measures aim to ensure the ecosystem security of the App Store and provide developers with more flexible choices and economic benefits.
In the past, Apple's App Store and Google Play, as the world's most important app stores, required developers to make in app purchases through their payment systems and charge a 30% commission. Any unauthorized developer accessing other payment systems is considered a violation of the App Store's regulations.
This change only applies to App Stores for iOS and iPadOS in the United States. In other app stores, the application does not allow buttons, external links, or persuasive language to guide users to choose other purchasing options besides in store.
It is worth noting that if a developer's application involves misleading marketing, fraud, or fraudulent activities related to the new regulations, the corresponding application will be taken down from the App Store, and relevant personnel may be disqualified from the developer program.
Apple will provide customers with in app warnings to let them know that they will be leaving the App Store and making purchases on external websites, while reminding them that the protection features of the App Store will no longer be applicable.
According to Apple's statement, the requirement for links aims to minimize "deception, fraud, and chaos" while providing developers with the opportunity to "attract users to use other platforms" and allowing customers to choose between in app purchases and purchases through other channels.
Technology media MacRumors stated that this change stems from a legal dispute between Apple and Epic Games in 2021. In the end, Apple won the lawsuit, and the US court stated that it had not found any violations of antitrust laws by Apple. However, the court's ruling ruled that Apple must stop obstructing developers from guiding users to use third-party payment channels.
The dispute between Apple and Epic can be traced back to 2020, when Epic attempted to bypass Apple's App Store regulations, which required content purchases within iOS applications to be made through the App Store, and Apple would charge a 15% to 30% revenue share.
It is worth mentioning that with the release of Vision Pro in full swing, on January 16th local time, Apple announced the official launch of the Vision Pro App Store before the device's release on February 2nd. Apple claims that the new App Store provides users with over one million compatible iOS and iPad applications.
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