This article was last updated 3 years ago

Apple
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Apple’s App Store has been the epicenter of several controversies mlstly regarding its App Store policies which landed the giant in hot waters in US as well as  the UK at a time. Now, the Cupertino-based tech giant has brought a major upheaval to its App Store policies as it has finally allowed developers to email customers about other (and cheaper) methods of payment outside of the iOS app or the App Store, circumventing the current system which sees Apple take a sizeable commission from purchases made on its App Store.

This announcement by Apple comes after loads of controversy and lawsuits over its practices and treatment of developers on the App Store. In fact, the company had been subject to a class-action lawsuit by app developers Donald Cameron and Illinois Pure Sweat Basketball over allegations of being engaged in anti-competitive practices and that it monopolized distribution for iOS apps and in-app purchases. The agreement is still pending the approval of the court.

Prior to this announcement, developers were prohibited from helping customers make direct payments and instead had to accept the cut on transactions made. Now, developers from all app categories can encourage customers to pay directly instead of through Apple.

Apple said it is “clarifying that developers can use communications, such as emails, to share information about payment methods outside of their iOS app” to give developers even more flexibility to reach their customers. “As always, developers will not pay Apple a commission on any purchases taking place outside of their app or the App Stores.”

The App Store has been a source for controversies both at home and abroad for Apple, in fact, it even resulted in an “Epic” antitrust trial. Its high commission rates were criticized as well.

Additionally, the company expanded the price options developers can offer for all kinds of subscriptions, in-app purchases, and paid apps from fewer than 100 options to over 500 options. A new transparency report will also be published from now on to share information about the app review process, including how many apps are rejected, the number of customer and developer accounts deactivated, “objective data regarding search queries and results,” and the number of apps removed from the App Store. Developers can now choose the prices of the apps and in-app purchases as per their wishes as well.

If that is not enough, developers making less than $1 million dollars annually through the App Store from 2015 to 2021 can now claim any amount from $250 to $30,000 from a new fund of $100 million that will be created by Apple, along with a reducedcommission.