Apple reportedly keeping app affiliate rate at 7%, dropping in-app purchase rate to 2.5%

[kristine]

Last month, Apple announced changes to its iTunes Affiliate program, saying that the rates that users would receive per app sale would fall. While at the time, it was stated that the app affiliate rate would be slashed from 7 percent to 2.5 percent, it appears now that might not actually be the case…

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According to MacGamer HQ, Apple is reducing in-app iOS and Mac commission to 2.5 percent, but the rate for apps themselves, both iOS and Mac, will remain at 7 percent.

The report cites an email from iTunes Affiliate support, which breaks down the rates and clarifies that “only in-app commissions have changed.”

iOS app commissions: 7 percent
In-app iOS commissions: 2.5 percent
Mac apps commissions: 7 percent
In-app Mac commissions: 2.5 percent
Please note that only in-app commissions have changed.

Furthermore, lending credibility to today’s report, many iTunes Affiliate users have noticed the their rate didn’t actually fall to 2.5 percent and is still at 7 percent despite the new month.

This is an interesting and incredibly notable difference between what was originally expected. Apple caught many people off guard when it announced the affiliate rate changes with just one-week notice. It makes sense for Apple to cut in-app commission rates, seeing that many in-app purchases are subscriptions that renew monthly. Apple last year reduced its revenue share for subscription purchase from 80-30 to 85-15, and these affiliate rate changes align with that.