The iOS app ecosystem helps bring millions into the economy and supports thousands of jobs around the world, according to new Apple research.
The mobile giant has published (opens in a new tab) two reports, one commissioned by the company, that analyze the impact of the App Store on the general economy.
The reports, from the Analytics Group (commissioned by Apple) and the Progressive Policy Institute, seek to challenge this narrative that Apple is abusing its dominance in the App Store to the detriment of its rivals and developers.
Benefits of the app store
Epic Games and others have tried to argue that Apple is violating antitrust and other laws by charging developers a 30% discount on every in-app purchase and sale, since iOS does not allow other methods of downloading apps.
“The iOS app economy continued its trajectory as an engine of economic growth and opportunity in 2021, supporting more than 2,2 million jobs in the United States and helping small businesses never outdo themselves,” says Apple.
According to the analysis group's report, the revenue of small developers - those who earn less than a million dollars a year and have less than a million annual downloads - increased by 113% between 2019 and 2021 worldwide. In the United States, that number was 118%. (The search excluded those with fewer than 1,000 downloads.)
This isn't the first time Apple has published research on the App Store. In early April, Apple published (opens in a new tab) a report, also from the Analytics Group, showing that its own apps are "rarely the most popular apps of any particular type," and seeks to challenge the narrative of that Apple favors theirs. Applications .
And in June 2021, Apple published (opens in a new tab) a similar report showing that the App Store facilitated approximately €643 billion in bookings and sales worldwide in 2020, a 24% increase over the previous year. last year.
Editing the registry
While the origin of these reports means they can't be taken at face value, Apple is probably right.
The ease of downloading apps from the App Store, knowing that someone at Apple has verified them, has opened up whole new worlds, aided by the quality of the iPhone as a tool.
Entire industries, like Instagram influencers and in-app car sharing, have largely grown out of the iOS ecosystem.
However, does Apple deserve to keep 30% of these transactions? Many developers, big and small, would argue now, and that's the crux of the matter for Apple.
Although the company won against Epic in court, changes were made (opens in a new tab) to the App Store to allow developers to send viewers to external websites to register clients.