Apple plans to change the rules it has for children's apps, raising concerns among some app developers about the way the tech giant wields power unilaterally over an App Store that has become an industry unto itself.
Under the new rules, which Apple had planned to implement next month, kids apps on Apple's App Store will be banned from using external analytics software -- lines of code that collect extremely detailed information about who is using an app and how. Apple is also severely curtailing their ability to sell ads, which underpins the business model that results in many apps being free. The changes were prompted in part by some children viewing inappropriate ads, Apple says.
The new rules pit Apple's privacy prerogative against an overreach of its power.
Apple says it is making the move in part to better protect users' privacy by shielding children from data trackers, a move that has been lauded by some privacy advocates. But some developers say they fear the new rules won't protect kids -- possibly exposing them to more adult apps -- and could pointlessly reduce their businesses.
That's what's worrying Gerald Youngblood. He created Tankee, an iPhone app intended to be a safe alternative to YouTube, with the help of privacy experts and lawyers. While the app is gaining traction, ranking in the top 10 apps for kids ages 9 to 11, the new rules could limit Tankee's ability to show ads and force Youngblood to abandon his model to make the app free.
Tankee shouldn't be lumped in with the apps that are negligent and fail to protect children, Youngblood said. "We thought they were going to shut down these apps that are ignoring privacy and targeting kids," he said. "We were built with privacy as a foundation."
Apple says it was simply responding to parents' concerns. Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide marketing, said parents were complaining to Apple about inappropriate advertising shown to their kids while using iPhone apps. "Parents are really upset when that happens because they trust us," Schiller said.
After an inquiry from The Washington Post, Apple said Friday that it now plans to delay the rule changes. "We aren't backing off on this important issue, but we are working to help developers get there," Apple spokesman Fred Sainz wrote in an emailed statement. The statement said some developers had asked Apple to clarify the new rules, but that "generally we have heard from them that there is widespread support for what we are trying to do to protect kids."
Apple's June announcement of its new kids app rules has triggered complaints from usually complacent developers. They say that because of Apple's dominance of the app market, its potentially small changes can wreak havoc on many businesses. Apple has about 71% of spending on the U.S. app market, while Google is a distant second with around 29%. Globally, consumers spent $25.5 billion on Apple's App Store in the first half of 2019 alone, according to market research firm Sensor Tower, far ahead of the $14 billion spent on Google's Android platform.
"Apple would definitely throw its weight around less if it knew all its developers could desert it for any number of alternatives," said Christopher Sagers, a professor at the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and author of the upcoming book United States v. Apple that explores the complaints against the company of anti-competitive behavior.
Apple's App Store is already under the antitrust microscope. The company is facing a European investigation into allegations made by Swedish music app Spotify that Apple unfairly tipped the scales on the App Store in favor of Apple Music, a similar service. And the Supreme Court in May allowed a lawsuit to proceed that accuses Apple of using monopoly power to inflate app prices.
Children's apps are estimated to make up only a small portion of the millions of apps available in the store, though Apple declined to say what percentage they are.
Apple has previously contacted developers and advertising software operators to ask them to remove inappropriate ads -- but that approach typically failed, Schiller said. And analytics software has gotten increasingly sophisticated in how it collects data.
Now, critics say, Apple is throwing the baby out with the bathwater by banning all external tracking and advertising on children's apps, even when those apps comply with regulations around data privacy.
"This will simply kill the kids app category," said Dylan Collins, chief executive of SuperAwesome, which helps app developers navigate child-privacy laws in several countries. Apple's changes are "easy to perceive as ham-fisted" and show Apple doesn't understand how the changes will affect the sector, he said.
A long set of rules, known as the App Store Review Guidelines, govern the way app developers are allowed to operate. How those rules are enforced is a mystery, developers say. They have little visibility into Apple's process of approving and rejecting apps. And when they are told they are in violation of the rules, they are often not told why. Apple says on its website that its app review team makes about 1,000 calls a week to diagnose any issues that led to a rejection of their app.
Business on 08/21/2019