Disney+ and Hulu Drop IAP
The change was noted on Reddit over the weekend, and there are details on the Disney+ and Hulu websites. Both the Disney+ and Hulu websites say that new and returning subscribers cannot sign up for and pay through Apple, but existing Apple-billed subscribers are not affected.
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Eliminating the in-app purchase fees paid to Apple seems to be part of an effort to boost streaming revenue, paired with price hikes and also a recent crackdown on password sharing.
Disney+ and Hulu will no longer be eligible for Apple’s Video Partner Program going forward, and subscribers may notice a change in tvOS and the Apple TV app. The Video Partner Program provides integration with Apple technologies like AirPlay, Universal Search, zero sign-on, and more for streaming video apps that support in-app purchase.
Disney’s rationale is clear here: When customers sign up for Disney subscription services via Apple, Apple takes up to 15% of the monthly fees those services generate. And Disney CEO Bob Iger has made it clear that he doesn’t want to pay that anymore.
As Disney focuses on getting its streaming services to profitability, avoiding the Apple tax is a no brainer.
It’s telling that even the largest companies in the world find the Apple tax to business impairing. The more you tighten your grip, the more companies will slip through your fingers.
Disney, one of the biggest Apple ally doesn’t want to pay the Apple tax anymore?
I don’t understand, it’s bringing them so much value, don’t they get it?
Even with all the special treatment they got.
But Apple only allows video, audio, and e-book apps to do this[…]
Sure, it sucks if you prefer to manage your subscriptions through Apple, just like when Netflix bailed, but Apple charges a lot for that convenience and it does limit what these platforms can do in terms of moving people to bundle pricing, which Disney is very interested in. Apple fails to justify their cut, or offer options that are more appealing than handling this themselves, so even BFF Disney is leaving.
As of writing a day after Disney made this change, Disney Plus is still listed as a member on Apple’s Video Partner Program page. I wrote about that program four years ago in the context of Apple seemingly retconning it into being a longstanding and “established” option available to developers of media applications.
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It is hard to feel anything at all, really, about the business decisions of one massive conglomerate compared to another. But Apple’s subscription management is — in a vacuum and distinct from anything else — one of the nicest around, and it ultimately hurts users that it is so unattractive to some developers when given other options.
Previously:
- Click-to-Cancel
- Spotify’s Google Play Store Deal
- Special App Store Behavior for Disney+ Subscriptions
- Whitelisted Developers
- Punitive Measures for Netflix IAP Test
- Apple Video Partner Program
- Seeking Special App Store Deals
- Epic Direct Payment
- Disney+
- Netflix No Longer Offering In-App Subscriptions
