Apple has announced the introduction of subscription services to the App Store. This move should allow content creators such as newspapers, magazines and the like to use recurring billing in their applications, much like the The Daily is set to use.
My apologies for quoting at length, but Apple says it more concisely than me:
Subscriptions purchased from within the App Store will be sold using the same App Store billing system that has been used to buy billions of apps and In-App Purchases. Publishers set the price and length of subscription (weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, bi-yearly or yearly). Then with one-click, customers pick the length of subscription and are automatically charged based on their chosen length of commitment (weekly, monthly, etc.). Customers can review and manage all of their subscriptions from their personal account page, including canceling the automatic renewal of a subscription. Apple processes all payments, keeping the same 30 percent share that it does today for other In-App Purchases.
If there was any question, Apple CEO Steve Jobs addressed the issues of publishers’s offering the same content outside of the App Store. It turns out that they can, but have to make an equal or better offer for the content on the App Store:
“Our philosophy is simple – when Apple brings a new subscriber to the app, Apple earns a 30 percent share; when the publisher brings an existing or new subscriber to the app, the publisher keeps 100 percent and Apple earns nothing,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “All we require is that, if a publisher is making a subscription offer outside of the app, the same (or better) offer be made inside the app, so that customers can easily subscribe with one-click right in the app. We believe that this innovative subscription service will provide publishers with a brand new opportunity to expand digital access to their content onto the iPad, iPod touch and iPhone, delighting both new and existing subscribers.”
Developers of current App Store apps have until June 30th to comply with the new rules.
Anyway, Apple also updated their iOS App Store guidelines to reflect the change, but more noteworthy, they’ve changed the language regarding “cheating” on the App Store.
If you attempt to cheat the system (for example, by trying to trick the review process, steal data from users, copy another developer’s work, or manipulate the ratings) your apps will be removed from the store and you will be expelled from the developer program.
Other minor changes have are mentioned in the revised guidelines, and you can read them for yourself here, if you’d like.
So, applications can now utilize subscription pay models, and Apple has drawn their line in the sand in regards to nefarious activity on the App Store.
I do think 30% of the content subscription cut is a little steep, but Apple is hedging their bets that more people will sign up in-app than through any other means. Either way, Apple wins. That is, content from third-party publishers, for Apple to promote their platform with, and a cut of their business for the privilege of being on one of the biggest platforms.
Continue reading:
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- Apple Watch Pre-Order
- Apple Research Kit launches with 5 Apps
- Apple TV now only $69
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