Good luck. Spotify is supported across way more devices. Seamless at that. I can be playing a track on my phone, and pick up the PlayStation and it’s synced.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Spotify Subscribers No Longer Allowed to Pay Through App Store
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Good for them. Hopefully many more will follow suit and this will convince Apple to rethink their extortionate commissions. If not we can just wait the EU will force them to allow side loading so new App Stores with less unreasonable policies can be created.
Another Epic games coming up, I can see them getting banned by Apple, deservedly so!
Spotify will no longer allow customers who previously subscribed to the Spotify streaming music service through the App Store to continue to pay using Apple's platform, reports Variety. Spotify has started sending emails to subscribers who pay using an App Store subscription to let them know that they'll need to make changes.
Spotify has not allowed customers to sign up for a Spotify Premium subscription through the App Store for the last seven years. App Store Spotify subscriptions were in fact only available for a two-year period between 2014 and 2016, but some longtime subscribers have continued to pay for Spotify through the App Store since that time.
In emails to customers, Spotify says that it is no longer accepting Apple's billing service as a payment method.
At the end of the final billing period, Spotify customers who have a subscription through the App Store will have their accounts transitioned to the free ad-supported service. Customers will then need to resubscribe to Premium using the Spotify website.
There is no mechanism for subscribing to Spotify through the Spotify app, as Spotify has restricted signups to its website in order to avoid paying Apple's fees. "You can't upgrade to Premium in the app," reads Spotify's "Premium" section in its iOS app. "We know, it's not ideal." For customers who have been continuing to pay through the App Store, Apple has been taking a 15 percent cut, which Spotify no longer wants to pay.
Given that Spotify has not allowed signups through the App Store for multiple years, this change is not likely to impact many Spotify customers.
Article Link: Spotify Subscribers No Longer Allowed to Pay Through App Store
Apple doesn’t operate in a vacuum. It doesn’t matter that they created and own the App Store. They still have to follow the laws of the countries they operate in, and more and more countries are becoming increasingly wary of Apple’s anti competitive strategies. Legislation will follow suit and Apple will be forced to comply.
That's not true, they'll be getting kicked off and then how will you load their app?
So you have no idea what running something like the App Store costs. Also, most companies charge the same fee to use their online stores.
Edit: Also, I am willing to bet less than 1% of users will sideload on their phones.
Is anyone surprised that a company that has been unable to turn a profit ever is choosing not to burn 15% of their revenue from a chunk of subscribers?
You sure have a strange way of seeing things.
With Apollo, you were more than happy to see them shut down because Christian is just a freeloader.
But when it comes to Spotify, you think Apple deserves their 30% cut. No freeloading off Spotify's hard work whatsoever.
This is a common misconception and was an intentional misdirection by companies like Spotify. The fee isn’t only for credit card fees.
How many more Subscriptions would they have if they offered subs through the App Store? I don't do subs unless they are through Apple.
You could probably count it on 2 hands, and I'm only being kind of sarcastic.
Sure, Apple is basically doing it for free. One must wonder why they’re so against alternative stores if the App Store is so unprofitable and they can barely recover the costs (if at all!). /s
Exactly! Who knew? Nobody because Apple prevent developers from letting users know there is an alternate (and often cheaper) way to pay for their service outside the crAppStore.
All well and good but letting users know that is an option is impossible in the app because Apple explicitly ban that.
It's in the developer guidelines. If you didn't know, you shouldn't be submitting apps to the app store.
It is way better business to charge 15-30% than 5%.
While Apple offers SDK, App Store, and reviews for a minimal $100 annual fee to non-paid apps, proposing that the App Store cut is there only covers credit card transaction fees is unfair to Apple. I am sure gross margins are excellent (Apple is a good business), but I doubt 5% would cover the Apple's costs of running App Store (including related services and SDK development) AND credit card fees.
Typical selfishness, a developer using the real estate of the App Store without wanting to pay rent.
1. Apple built the framework, apis that Spotify uses to build the app
2. Apple built the tools that Spotify uses to build the app
3. Apple hosts/reviews/distributes the app for user confidence and convenience (which by the way is unlimited for Spotify to use)
4. Spotify is now freeloading this service now that Apple is no longer getting the cut (and no, $99/year barely pays for 3 app review hours). You're not going to be able to argue how $99/year pays for all of this.
5. Apple has always allowed Spotify to acquire users outside the app. It was Spotify's decision to include IAP.
You sure have a wrong way of seeing things.
Come again how Apple is freeloading.
Last edited:
That's correct, it is in the guidelines but it's also an ignorant view. Just because something is in the rules doesn't mean it's what's best for users or UX as a whole.
Apple's refusal to allow developers from mentioning within their own app a 3rd party payment option is stupidly unreasonable. Is Apple so afraid of competition and the loss of their 15% or 30% cut?
Lack of choice is Apple's doing.
Now Apple is being forced to give users a choice.
Apple cannot ban links to outside App Store payments, U.S. appeals court says
A U.S. appeals court on Monday upheld a federal court's order that could force Apple Inc to change payment practices in its App Store.www.reuters.com
Apple to Allow In-App Third-Party Payment Options for First Time in the Netherlands
Apple has announced that it will allow third-party payment options for in-app purchases for dating apps in the Netherlands, in the first ever...www.macrumors.com
EU Provisionally Agrees on Law That Would Force Apple to Allow Alternative App Stores, Sideloading, and iMessage Interoperability
European lawmakers have provisionally agreed upon a new law that would force Apple to allow user access to third-party app stores and permit the...
Apple's App Store Practices Again to Be Investigated in South Korea, Despite Change to Allow Third-Party Payment Systems
Apple is to again be investigated by South Korea's telecommunications regulator, alongside Google and One Store, over suspected violations of...
Stupidly unreasonable? Uh no. Apple built all the frameworks, services, tools just for the $99/year revenue they get from the dev program? LOL that barely pays for 3 hours of app review time. Not to mention the terrabytes of bandwidth they're obligated to serve for your app around the world. If the user discovered your service through the App Store, Apple deserves a finders fee. If user discovered your service through an ad, your ad should say to sign up in the website, not the app.
Lack of choice? Uh no, web is the choice. Apple even added push notifications to the web so Spotify can absolutely function as a web app. Also there is a choice to go Android only.
That's not a catch. Every app in that category would simply disable IAP considering web is extremely easy to pay for things these days. How is it fair when Apple developer built the app store/tools/review process for the user/and etc... and developer takes 100% of the revenue. What? For $99/year dev program that only pays for 3 hours of app review time? Nah.
If the user discovered your service through the App Store, Apple deserves a finders fee.
And they shouldn't. Because that would be freeloading off of Apple's work.
When you advertise, you simply tell the user to go to the web to sign up and then tell them to download the app.
If the user discovered your service through the App Store, Apple deserves a finders fee.
Can’t advertise in Target, Walmart or Amazon that a better price may be available directly from a manufacturer either.
All developers pay rent in the form of annual developer fees.
Apple needs to charge more then, otherwise Amazon, Starbucks, Bank of America, Uber, Netflix, Instagram, etc. are all freeloading since Apple doesn't get a cut from them for any transactions. Apple knows this yet they're perfectly fine with it.