Apple has a heavy hand. The US giant recently changed its App Store terms of service regarding NFT (or “non-fungible token”) transactions in apps running on iOS, reports. Phonandroid.
The brand does not oppose the sale and purchase of NFT, especially through cryptocurrencies, on its devices. But this requires that many rules be respected. Therefore, any transaction must go through Apple’s integrated purchasing systems (“in-app” purchases). Applications are thus prohibited from “pointing customers to other purchase mechanisms”.
A “grotesquely overvalued” commission
The reason for this rule is simple: Apple applies a 30% commission on all transactions made through the App Store. Such scale thus allows him to take a percentage of all NFT and cryptocurrency transactions. “Buttons, external links or other calls to action” that transfer the transaction to another platform are prohibited.
This 30% tax is not the same as traditional NFT applications such as OpenSea or Magic Eden, which only charge 2.5% commission. Players in the middle criticize, moreover, the policy of Apple in this area.
The American company “crushed another new technology that could rival the grossly overpriced integrated payment service,” said Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, in September. “Apple must be stopped,” he said.