iPhone Spotify App Offers Expanded Payment Method Choices
Unleashing Spotify: Pay Top Dollar Without Apple's Cut
Kick back and enjoy your tunes on Spotify without annoying ads, right? But,signing up for their Premium service on an iPhone? Forget about it, there's no "pay now" button in sight, and Apple's keeping a hefty chunk of the cash you hand over.
The 'Apple Tax'
Here's the lowdown: Spotify and similar apps don't want a whopping 15-30% of your hard-earned cash going straight to Apple. That's why Apple's App Store functions the way it does - any in-app purchases on your iPhone, Apple takes a cut (either 15% or 30%, depending on the app and its subscriptions).
Spotify and alike apps aren't obligated to shell out the dough if you make your purchases externally - say, subscribing through Safari instead of in the app. And that's why Apple's been keeping linking to external sites for payments on lock - if you want customers to pay your services directly, you can either do it through the app and cough up the fee, or hope the customers navigate to the payment site on their own.
Spotify would occasionally show off their Premium tab in the app, but it was pretty much just for show. If you were a free user, it merely hinted that you needed to sign up through your browser if you truly wanted to subscribe. In true Spotify fashion, they acknowledged it was a pain, but never explicitly called Apple out.
Get Your Payment on
The game has changed this week: Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers decided that Apple can no longer prevent developers from steering users to third-party websites for payments, or impose fees on purchases made outside the app. Expect to see updates across apps like Spotify that include links to their own websites for subscriptions and payments.
Apple swears they'll comply with the ruling, yet they're still planning to appeal. However, they appear to be playing ball for now - Spotify's latest app update underwent Apple's approval, and now you can see links to various subscription options when you hit the Premium tab.
The decision came as a response to Epic Games' continuous legal battles against Apple. Judge Rogers didn't agree with most of Epic's allegations in their 2021 decision, but she did rule that Apple had to allow developers to offer alternative payment options. Apple tried to bend the rules by charging a new fee for transactions made outside of their app, as well as by flooding users with messages urging them to stick with in-app purchases. Judge Rogers was not amused, reprimanding Apple execs such as CEO Tim Cook, and threatening additional penalties.
Apple got a rough deal in court this time around, but apps like Spotify are no doubt feeling giddy. Look forward to more options for making payments outside of the apps you use, and maybe even lower prices as a result. Spotify, though, isn't budging - the company never offered in-app payments to begin with, and they still aren't jumping on that bandwagon.
- In the tech industry, Spotify and other apps have largely resisted Apple's payment options on iPhone, as they don't want to pay a significant portion of their revenue to Apple.
- The technology business has been affected by this issue, with Spotify, among others, manipulating their apps to maintain user navigation towards external payment sites instead of in-app purchases.
- This week, a ruling by Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers allowed developers to direct users to third-party websites for payments, which may lead to changes in Spotify's approach to payment options on the iPhone.
- Within the finance and business sectors, this decision may pave the way for more flexible payment options, potentially leading to lower prices for consumers since apps will no longer be bound by Apple's cut.
- Despite the ruling, Apple seems determined to appeal the decision, but Spotify, which never offered in-app payments in the first place, is unlikely to change its stance in light of the new developments.
