App store

So-called super apps, which combine all kinds of services in one app, have not been a big issue in Europe and the USA so far. In China, however, they are the norm. Users there spend a lot of time on WeChat, known in China as Weixin, to organize half of their lives – even though the main purpose of the app was originally to send text messages. ByteDance, the operator of TikTok, also wants to develop Douyin, as TikTok is known in its home country, into a super app. This is now increasingly bringing both providers, Weixin parent Tencent and Douyin owner ByteDance, into conflict with iPhone manufacturer Apple. This concerns the question of app store commissions, which may not be paid via the super apps.

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Apple makes demands

Apple’s rules here are actually simple: Depending on the size of the sales, the company wants 15 or 30 percent of the revenue from app sales, in-app payments and subscriptions, as long as it is digital content. However, this has not been the case for the enormously popular mini-apps and mini-games that have many millions of users on Weixin and Douyin. Apple now apparently no longer wants to put up with this, according to a Bloomberg Report: The “loophole” should now be closed.

Apple has started negotiations with Tencent and ByteDance on the world’s largest smartphone market. The threat: future updates from Weixin or Douyin could no longer be released if the platforms continue to allow payments in mini-apps that run in their programs without Apple’s involvement. Apple also wants Tencent to deactivate an in-game messaging feature that could redirect users to other platforms.

Huawei also wants money

Apple’s first announcements were made in May, and Tencent is said to have not yet responded. Apple has taken similar action against ByteDance. They have also threatened to no longer allow updates from Douyin if payment backdoors are not closed. The iPhone manufacturer is under pressure in the Chinese market. Recently, Apple has again suffered a drop in sales in what is – depending on how you count – the second or third largest market. In-app payments, which are big business, could help Apple to find a balance here.

Meanwhile, it is not only Apple that is putting the thumbscrews on app providers, but also domestic providers such as Huawei. The company would like to be involved in the future as part of its “Harmony” ecosystem. However, the telecommunications giant is not yet daring to approach Tencent, Weixin explicitly said. Neither Tencent nor ByteDance commented on the conflict with Apple. The iPhone manufacturer only said that it has guidelines for digital goods and that Apple’s app review team also rejects apps that violate these.

(bsc)