Apple is asking WordPress for iOS app to implement in-app purchase options for its .com plans, and prevent the app from getting updates until the development team agrees to add the feature, WordPress developer Matt Mullenweg said today on Twitter .
Mullenweg says the WordPress iOS app was ‘locked out’ and in order to push updates and bug fixes, the company had to agree to add support for in-app purchase plans. An update was released 19 hours ago after three weeks of no updates, so it appears that WordPress has assigned them to introduce WordPress.com in-app purchase options.
WordPress.com offers various paid plans for WordPress.com hosting, priced from $ 4 per month to $ 45 per month based on features, storage, support and other parameters. There are also business options that start at $ 1,700 per month.
WordPress.com plans let users set up a custom domain, access email, build entire websites, and more, but it’s separate from the WordPress platform. Currently, you can create WordPress.com pages in the app, or add a self-hosted page that uses WordPress by default for management purposes, but there is no option to use the app around WordPress.com set up paid features in the app.
WordPress is a website platform that is the backbone for many websites on the internet. It is a free, open source tool that anyone can use and customize to meet their needs. WordPress.com is meanwhile a separate hosting service with the mentioned paid plans.
Mullenweg says the WordPress team is not sure how to implement support for in-app purchases for the WordPress.com pages, because the WordPress app supports pages built on the WordPress platform. The team enters a new name for the app or lets other hosts and plugins support in-app purchases for their plans.
According to Apple’s App Store Review Guidelines, apps that have access to paid digital content or services must use the in-app purchasing system. Apps running across different platforms allow users to access content, subscriptions and features they have paid for outside the App Store (such as on WordPress.com), but Apple’s rules state that these items should also be available for purchase in app in the iOS app.
Apple considers WordPress as a multiplatform service, which means that it can offer its content or services through the WordPress.com website in the WordPress app, but an in-app purchase for those services must also be available. The WordPress app and WordPress.com offerings have been available for several years, so it’s not clear why Apple did not previously require WordPress.com in-app purchases to be made available in the app.
Apple told MacRumors that it approves the latest update of the WordPress app and works with WordPress to bring the app in line with the guidelines of the App Store Review.
Apple’s request that WordPress perform in-app purchases comes because Apple has to contend with control from anti-trust regulators over its App Store purchase policies, and at noon a heated argument with Epic Games over in-app purchases.
Update: This article was updated to add additional information about Apple’s App Store policies and the reasoning why Apple requires WordPress.com in-app purchases in the WordPress app.
Article link: WordPress for iOS has been blocked from updating unless it agrees to add in-app purchases for .Com plans
