Apple unveils new App Store guidelines – to the dismay of Facebook parent Meta

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• Apple wants to participate in advertising “boosts”
• Meta spokesman accuses Apple of changing course
• Spotify is also taking action against Apple’s measures

Apple unveils new App Store rules

The iPhone manufacturer Apple recently updated the guidelines for its App Store app marketplace. New in the tech group’s rules: regulations for dealing with apps in which advertising campaigns can be managed. “Apps with the sole purpose of enabling advertisers (persons or companies promoting a product, service or event) to purchase and manage advertising campaigns across media types (television, outdoor, websites, apps, etc.) must do not use in-app purchases. These apps are for campaign management and do not display the ads themselves,” the Cupertino, California-based company wrote in an announcement. However, the situation is different when app developers indicate additional offers in their consumer applications: “Digital purchases for content experienced or consumed in an app, including the purchase of advertising to be displayed in the same app (e.g. Sales of ‘boosts’ for posts in a social media app) must use in-app purchases.” Apple is thus taking a stake of 30 percent of the amount, as “CNBC” reports.

Meta is bothered by new guidelines

This annoys Facebook mother Meta in particular. In a statement to the broadcaster, Tom Channick, a spokesman for the company, said: “Apple is evolving its policies to grow its business while undercutting others in the digital economy.” In contrast to smartphones on which Google’s Android operating system runs and, in addition to its Play Store, other app procurement options can also be used iOS-Users don’t have to go to Apple’s App Store to stock up on new apps. “Apple previously said it does not take a share of developers’ ad revenue and has now apparently changed their mind,” Channik said.

Contentious issue advertising “boosts”

According to Apple, a so-called “boost” is a digital service “that enables a person or organization to pay to increase the reach of a post or profile,” an iGroup spokesman told CNBC. For this reason, in-app purchases are necessary. As the “Wall Street Journal” reported in August, Meta, then still under the name Facebook, had previously negotiated with Apple whether the iPhone manufacturer should receive part of the boost amounts. At the time, the group led by Mark Zuckerberg argued that this was a form of advertising, which can also be seen from the fact that it is often used by small companies to achieve greater reach.

Twitter and TikTok are already using Apple’s in-app purchases for “boosted” posts, according to CNBC.

Further measures planned?

At Meta, however, there is currently concern that Apple will extend the participation rule to the standalone ad manager app over time, which is currently still explicitly excluded from in-app purchases. However, this could possibly change soon, as employees of the Zuckerberg Group told The Verge.

Previous criticism of app tracking options

This isn’t the first point of contention between the two NASDAQ giants when it comes to advertising. Last year, Apple introduced the option to turn off app tracking for all third-party apps on its iOS devices. Since then, users have been able to opt-out of app developers creating a unique device ID, making it difficult for them to track their ad campaigns. Apple CEO Tim Cook introduced the feature with a view to protecting iPhone users’ data, while Meta boss Zuckerberg shortly afterwards criticized The Verge that the move “is not as altruistic as they claim”. Instead, the iGroup wants to promote its own advertising business. In February 2022, Meta CFO Dave Wehner predicted that these changes would also be reflected in the consolidated balance sheet. “We believe the overall impact of iOS will create headwinds for our business in 2022,” Wehner said, according to CNBC. “They’re in the order of $10 billion, so it’s a pretty significant headwind for our business.”

Spotify also affected by App Store rules

But the music streaming service Spotify also dislikes Apple’s new App Store guidelines, as the online portal “Axios” reports. In concrete terms, Apple’s rules prohibit Spotify from placing a button in its own app that offers assistance in purchasing an audio book outside of the app. A direct URL to buy the audio book also violates the guidelines. “Apple is putting less imagination into innovation while at the same time doubling its fee collection and stifling competition,” lamented Spotify attorney Harry Clarke. “They’re using every tool in the monopolist’s playbook.” Daniel Ek, CEO of the streaming provider, also criticized the approach and accused the company of “moving the goal post”, according to the portal.

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