Apple could soon be relaxing its policy on subscription video services sold through its App Store and reducing its cut of those sales by half.
According to a Bloomberg report, Apple will reduce its cut to 15 percent, down from 30 percent, for SVOD services that will be integrated with its upcoming TV app. The 15 percent rate has already been extended to some services but now will apply to all services that sign on for the TV app, which Apple recently touted as a unified user experience aggregating video content from multiple services in one app.
In addition to hopefully attracting more SVODs to Apple’s marketplace, the reduced fees could also affect pricing in the App Store. As the report notes, services like Google’s YouTube Red had been charging more for its service on Apple devices in order to help recoup the cost of the higher fees.
Services that have already been enjoying the 15 percent rate include MLB.TV, Hulu Plus and Netflix, which was curiously not included in Apple’s new TV app when it was announced in October.
RELATED: Apple’s new TV app aggregates content on iOS, tvOS, but leaves out Netflix
As the report points out, Apple’s olive branch of sorts to video services comes as the company has put its focus on turning its Apple TV device into a central entertainment hub for living rooms. That strategy likely evolved out of the reportedly derailed attempts at establishing its own live TV subscription service.
Apple’s attempt to prop up a service that would have competed with Hulu, Sling TV and the upcoming DirecTV Now was apparently dashed when programmers and broadcasters didn’t respond to Apple’s style of negotiating.