Apple has agreed to make changes to its App Store in an effort to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by developers in the US. The company will allow developers to offer customers alternative payment methods outside the App Store and try out new price points for their products, as well as pay out USD 100 million through a new fund for small developers.
The lawsuit in the Northern District of California accused Apple of monopolising the distribution of iOS apps and in-app digital products, which resulted in commission overcharges to US iOS developers. The settlement remains subject to court approval. Apple said it "appreciates the developer feedback and ideas that helped inform the agreement, and respects the ongoing judicial review process".
The agreement allows developers to share payment options with users outside of their iOS app, for example via email or messaging. Previously if they tried to offer alternatives to Apple's payment system, with its mandatory commission for Apple, the app could be rejected from the App Store.
In addition, Apple will expand the number of price points available to developers for subscriptions, in-app purchases, and paid apps from fewer than 100 to more than 500. Developers will continue to set their own prices.
To help small developers, Apple will also establish a fund worth USD 100 million, offering payments of USD 250 to USD 30,000 each. This will be open to developers who earned USD 1 million or less per year in the US App Store in the period June 2015 to April 2021 covered by the lawsuit. Apple said this covers 99 percent of developers in the US.
The settlement furthermore upholds a number of changes made by Apple in the past year already as it comes under increasing pressure from regulators and developers alike to loosen its grip on the apps market. These include a lower commission for apps earning less than USD 1 million per year, an appeals process against Apple decisions rejecting apps on the Store, and a clear set of search criteria on the Store. These elements will be maintained for three years at least, and Apple also will publish an annual transparency report on its practices, with details such as the number of apps rejected or reviewed, accounts deactivated and search data.
The company is also introducing new terms for news publications on the App Store. They may benefit from half the usual commission, at 15 percent, as long as they conform to the Apple News format for their publications on the App Store.
