Major news organizations are joining the growing chorus of companies pushing for more favorable terms in Apple Inc.’s App Store, a crucial link to new digital customers.
In a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook on Thursday, a retailer representing the New York Times, the Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and other publishers said the stores want to know what it takes for them to better conditions – allowing them to make more money from digital subscriptions sold through Apple’s app store.
App developers, including news publishers, pay Apple 30% of revenue from first-time subscriptions made through iOS apps; that commission is reduced to 15% after the subscriber’s first year. Apple says the revenue split is comparable to other app marketplaces and lets the company cover the operating costs of the app store.
“The conditions of Apple’s unique marketplace have a significant impact on the ability to continue investing in high-quality, trusted news and entertainment, especially in competition with other larger companies,” said the letter, signed by Jason Kint, Chief Executive Officer, Next Digital Content.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment. Dow Jones & Co., publisher of the Journal, has a commercial agreement to deliver news through Apple services. Dow Jones is a unit of News Corp.
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