Apple commission on web purchases: Despite internal concerns

At legal and legal pressure, Apple now allows app providers and developers to link to the web for digital purchases. However, the group continues to demand a commission for the purchases made by browser, which is up to 27 percent.

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This fee claim allegedly also caused concerns at Apple: he initially spoke out against the commission on web purchases and asked himself whether Apple was allowed to estimate such a commission at all, explained app store boss Phil Schiller in one Hearing before a US court.

App Store as a “collection company”

In addition, he would have worried that under the new construct Apple now has to actively collect these fees for developers – instead of simply keeping the commission. “What happens if the developer does not pay and which procedure is then used?” According to the AP news agency, Schiller explained. The App Store will become a “collection company”, Quotes Techcrunch From the manager's statement. According to his own statement, Schiller also feared that the step was “harmful” for the ratio between Apple and developers.

Despite the concerns raised, Apple ultimately decided to introduce such a commission to web purchases-not only in the USA, but also in the EU. This was decided by a committee at the highest level in which Apple boss Tim Cook and the former CFO Luca Maestri were also sitting in addition to Schiller-next to the house lawyers. According to the hearing, Cook has also campaigned for the prominent warndialog, which appears every time users click on such a link in an iOS app.

Apple must allow web purchase links in apps

The hearing was carried out as part of the large cartel lawsuit that the player Epic Games had submitted five years ago against Apple (Epic Games vs. Apple, file number 4: 20-CV-05640, United States District Court, Northern District of California, Oakland division) . Apple won the procedure in practically all points-in contrast to Google, whose Play Store classified a jury as an illegal monopoly after a similarly designed epic lawsuit.

However, Apple forced an order to allow apps in the USA to point out users to shops on the web and to set a corresponding link. Apple also had to introduce corresponding options in the EU and the first other regions. Originally, it was strictly forbidden iPhone apps to set such shopping links. All in-app purchases have to be handled via Apple's purchase interface, the company automatically maintains up to 30 percent commission and thus makes billions of bills every year.