Apple on Thursday published new details on how it plans to handle third-party payments for dating apps in the Netherlands. The document confirms that Apple will continue to take a cut of all net revenues at a “reduced” rate of 27%.
It also states that developers must provide Cupertino with a report of all transactions each month so that they can be invoiced for the commission. Apple says it has the right to carry out audits to ensure accurate reporting.
Apple issued a letter to U.S. lawmakers Wednesday urging them not to allow the distribution of iPhone and iPad apps outside the App Store. It insists doing so “would allow malware, scams and data-exploitation to proliferate.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee will meet Thursday to consider the Open App Markets Act, a bill that hopes to prohibit companies like Apple from blocking sideloading and alternative app marketplaces.
In recognition of Heart Month, aka February, Apple is rolling out a series of new activity challenge and heart-health resources to support users’ efforts to stay healthy.
Also toward that end, the company hopes you’ll learn a thing or two from preliminary trends shown in the Apple Heart and Movement Study.
Apple has confirmed that developers can now release unlisted apps on iPhone, iPad and Mac that cannot be found without a direct link.
Unlisted apps — which do not appear in App Store search results, categories, recommendations, or other listings — will developers to distribute their titles to limited audiences, such as employees and students.
The Department of Justice, 35 U.S. states, and Microsoft have all backed Fortnite developer Epic Games in its fight against the App Store.
Briefs filed by Epic’s supporters with the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit say last year’s ruling — which said the App Store was not a monopoly — is wrong. They also claim Apple is stifling competition.
Steve Sheraton is one of the App Store’s original success stories. He was crashing on a friend’s couch when he first got the idea of making a funny video that made it look like he was drinking beer out of his iPhone, and a little while later, he was pulling in up to $20,000 a day in App Store revenue.
Here’s how Sheraton’s “iBeer” app, which celebrated 90 million downloads in 2014, became one of iPhone’s most popular apps and made a ton of cash.
Apple will be fined up to €50 million (approx. $57 million) by Dutch regulators for its rather pathetic attempt at allowing third-party payments for apps and subscriptions in the Netherlands.
Although Cupertino took half-hearted steps to comply with new legislation, it ensured that it was incredibly difficult for developers to implement third-party payment systems. It also demanded fees for payments it wasn’t processing.
Illinois is the latest U.S. state to file a bill that could force Apple and Google to accept third-party payment systems inside apps.
The “Freedom to Subscribe Directly Act,” supported by Hey app developer Basecamp, wants to prohibit both companies from requiring developers to use the App Store and Google Play to sell software and subscriptions.
The developer of battle royale hit PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, more commonly known as PUBG, is suing Apple and Google for refusing to remove an alleged clone from the App Store and Google Play.
Krafton Inc of South Korea and PUBG Santa Monica have filed a complaint that focuses on Free Fire, a battle royale game developed by Garena Online. They want the game pulled from Android and iOS, plus monetary damages.
Apple swiftly reacted to shameful clones of popular online game Wordle by booting them from the App Store.
Josh Wardle’s original version of the word game, available to play for free in a web browser, went viral in recent weeks. Some developers saw an opportunity to capitalize on that by charging for knockoff versions on iPhone and iPad.
Many of the clones, which quickly rose to the top of the App Store’s charts, used exactly the same name as Wardle’s game — and charged players as much as $30 per year in subscription fees. But they didn’t last long.
It seems it’s not that difficult to make millions of dollars on the App Store if you’re willing to charge people for a “free” service and you have money to spend on blatantly fake but seemingly effective reviews.
That’s how one developer, which offers an app that claims to make your music louder, has collected a cool $13 million — and somehow been featured by Apple multiple times in various countries — in under four years.
Apple has confirmed that it will allow developers to offer third-party payment systems for app purchases in South Korea, according to a new report.
The move comes after Korean regulators last August ruled that smartphone makers, including, could not force users to make purchases through their own app marketplaces exclusively. But Apple won’t give up its cut of revenues.
A U.S. district judge on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit filed against Apple by Cydia creator Jay Freeman . Filed last year, the complaint alleges that Apple maintains an illegal monopoly over app distribution on iOS.
Cydia, which launched in 2008, became the first App Store alternative for iPhone and iPad, providing access to thousands of unauthorized downloads. However, you can only access it if you have a jailbroken device.
The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) says Apple and Google have unfairly “developed a vice-like grip” on how we use our smartphones and that “millions of people” are losing out.
In addition to dominating the smartphone market, Apple and Google also “set all the rules,” the CMA said in a report published Tuesday. The two companies are accused of limiting innovation and choice, and driving up smartphone prices.
PlayStation Now, the streaming service that gives players access to more than 500 PlayStation 3 and 4 games, was on its way to iPhone and iPad back in 2017, according to documents that have surfaced as part of the Epic vs. Apple trial.
Apple had inside knowledge of Sony’s plans back in 2017, before PlayStation Now made its official debut. But for reasons currently unknown, the Japanese company never followed through on support for mobile devices.
Microsoft told Apple that it was willing to turn big Xbox exclusives into iPhone and iPad games before negotiations over bringing its Xbox Cloud Gaming service to the App Store broke down earlier this year, internal emails show.
Microsoft was also open to releasing individual apps for each of the titles available in its streaming catalog to comply with App Store rules. It changed course when it became apparent that appeasing Apple was just too difficult.
Developers will have to put plans to steer App Store users to their own direct payments systems on the back burner. A court on Wednesday granted Apple’s request to put the change on hold while the iPhone-maker appeals the Epic Games v. Apple court ruling.
Any modifications to the App Store resulting from the lawsuit are now in limbo… quite possibly for years.
Scott Forstall, a former senior vice president at Apple, allegedly encouraged Pandora to jailbreak the original iPhone so it could get a head start on building a native music streaming app, according to a new report.
Forstall met with Pandora co-founder and CEO Tim Westergren during iPhone’s early days — before it had an official App Store — and encouraged the company to use “back door toolkits” while “we get our act together at Apple.”
A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Tuesday that claimed Apple has a monopoly over app distribution on iOS.
The makers of Coronavirus Reporter sued Cupertino for rejecting their title from the App Store. But U.S. District Judge Edward Chen published a 34-page ruling that says the developers’ arguments “failed to pass muster.”
Carrot Weather, LumaFusion, and Apple Arcade hit Fantasian are some of the titles recognized in the 2021 App Store Awards, announced on Thursday.
Apple also identified “Connection” as the Trend of the Year, thanks to games like Among Us! and apps like Bumble, which “brought people together in meaningful ways — while meeting social, personal, and professional needs.”
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney renewed his attack on the App Store, telling a conference in South Korea that “Apple must be stopped.”
Sweeney, who spoke Tuesday at the Global Conference for Mobile Application Ecosystem Fairness, accused Apple of complying with “oppressive foreign laws.” He also called for “a single store that works with all platforms.”
Netflix Games is now available on iPhone and iPad, just over one week after making its debut on Android. Users can access all titles through the main Netflix app, but — as expected — they must be downloaded individually.
The service offers five games to begin with, including the two Stranger Things titles that were already available on iOS, and is available at no extra cost to those who already have a Netflix subscription.
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered Apple to add third-party payment options to the App Store by December 9, after denying the company’s motion for a stay in Fortnite developer Epic Games’ case against Cupertino.
Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said the motion, which argued that Apple needed time to implement the changes, was based on “a selective reading of the Court’s findings” and “ignores everything” in favor of an injunction.
Apple today confirmed that it will continue to accept App Store submissions over the holiday period for the first time.
The company usually takes a short break in December, during which App Store submissions are closed and developers must scramble to get their updates out. That changes this year, but Apple warns that reviews may be delayed.
Netflix may be forced to release its subscription games as individual downloads on the App Store to comply with Apple’s rules. Other subscription services, such as GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming, aren’t allowed on the App Store.
It is believed users will still be able to discover and launch titles through the main Netflix app, but they’ll need to download each one first.