Earlier today, a report suggested that Apple has been “secretly” buying ads for third-party applications in an effort to increase its commission earnings. Apple is now defending itself against some of those allegations, saying that it is a standard business practice in the industry…
Today’s report came from Forbes. The report said that Apple has been running advertisements for third-party applications across social media and other platforms to drive in-app purchases. The report said that Apple’s intention is to drive traffic directly to the App Store, rather than the developer’s own website, so that users end up buying subscriptions as in-app purchases – giving Apple its 15% or 30% cut.
After backlash from this report, Apple has confirmed that it is running these advertisements, but that its reasoning is nothing nefarious.
Currently, Apple says that it is running advertisements promoting more than 100 third-party applications across networks such as Google, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, and Twitter. The initial report from Forbes stated that impacted applications included Babbel, Bumble, HBO, Masterclass, Plenty of Fish, and Tinder.
What do you think of this situation? Is it in Apple’s rights to advertise third-party applications on other platforms? Let us know down in the comments!
