{"id":44433,"date":"2024-08-09T15:16:08","date_gmt":"2024-08-09T19:16:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/?p=44433"},"modified":"2024-09-09T10:31:14","modified_gmt":"2024-09-09T14:31:14","slug":"apple-pressures-bytedance-and-tencent-over-iap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2024\/08\/09\/apple-pressures-bytedance-and-tencent-over-iap\/","title":{"rendered":"Apple Pressures ByteDance and Tencent Over IAP"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tim Hardwick<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Apple is putting pressure on Tencent and ByteDance to make significant changes to two of China’s most popular apps in order to remove loopholes that circumvent Apple’s typical 30% commission, Bloomberg<\/a><\/em> reports.<\/p>

The loopholes are linked to mini-apps that allow users of Tencent’s social-messaging app WeChat and ByteDance’s short-video app Douyin to play games, hail taxis, and make online purchases without leaving the app.<\/p>

Apple reportedly told both companies they need to prevent mini-app creators from including links to outside payment systems that circumvent its commission system.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n

They also want to ban in-app chats because they would make it possible to send payment links.<\/p>\n\n

Tim<\/a> Sweeney<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

Apple divides “Super Apps” into several categories that it restricts differently, to force each to stay in its lane and not expand into a source of real competition to Apple: games with user generated content; apps containing mini apps; stores (EU only); and web browsers.<\/p>\n

Games with user generated content are taxed and limited by ambiguous rules that require user content to not add functionality not in the base game, a hopelessly vague notion that would prohibit Roblox, if fully enforced.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

The Super App junk fee change isn’t written in the terms. It’s a reinterpretation of a long standing policy described in Bloomberg and dozens of other publications today. (See Kodak-Newcal on the risks of acknowledging a significant adverse change in terms.)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n

Previously:<\/p>\n