Apple is a huge target in the last few months for many smaller and larger companies. Facebook is one of these companies, which recently criticized the iOS operating system and its app store, the App Store, for charging high transaction fees. However, it seems that there is little room for negotiation with Apple, as the company has just agreed with Facebook to temporarily eliminate commissions for certain payments.
Facebook manages to convince Apple to give up commissions on the App Store
Facebook criticized last month, immediately after the scandal with Epic Games, the fact that Apple charges 30% commission from payments from the Facebook application for online events. These types of paid events were specially designed to help small and medium-sized businesses make money through the social network, as the pandemic blocks the possibility of organizing events in public spaces.
From these events, Facebook does not earn any financial benefit, the entire amount traded reaching the beneficiaries directly. However, if the transaction was made through the Facebook application of iOS, 30% of the money went to Apple, as this is the standard commission for transactions on its platform. Initially, Apple refused to give up these commissions at that time.
However, now, Facebook has confirmed that Apple has finally given up and that by the end of 2020, transactions related to online events organized through its social network will no longer be subject to Apple’s fees. Thus, users who participate and want to pay from the iPhone, will have the certainty that all the money reaches the final beneficiaries.
This isn’t the first time Apple has made exceptions to the rules, even if it’s only temporarily. In the case of Amazon, Apple has reduced the commission from 30 to 15% for the Prime Video streaming service, despite the fact that for other similar services, the subscription commission drops to 15% only after the first year of subscription of each user subscribe via iOS, iPad OS, tvOS or macOS applications.