Apple is halving its App Store cut for smaller developers

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The announcement follows an ongoing protracted legal battle with Epic

Apple Arcade
(Image credit: Apple)

Apple is reducing the amount of money it takes from smaller developers shipping their product on the App Store. According to The Verge, companies that make less than $1 million a year on the platform will be eligible for the smaller cut.

Apple normally takes 30% of the money that developers make on its platform, but will now reduce that cut down to 15% for qualifying companies. It's not clear exactly how widespread the change will be, but Apple says that the "vast majority" of the 28 million registered app makers will feel its effects. It's worth noting that the $1 million cut-off is cumulative, so developers with multiple apps on the store are less likely to qualify.

The process isn't automatic, and developers will be invited to apply for the reduced share ahead of its launch on January 1, 2021. Apple says it'll be releasing more information about eligibility throughout December. If a company earned less than $1 million in 2020 it's likely to qualify, but if revenues exceed that threshold in future, developers will automatically be removed from the program.

The change comes in the wake of the very public Apple vs Epic lawsuit. Earlier this year, Epic attempted to circumvent the App Store fee, prompting Apple to kick the game off its platform. The ensuing legal battle is still underway, and is due to go to court in May, but the game won't be returning to the iOS store any time before then.

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Ali Jones
Ali Jones
Managing Editor, News

I'm GamesRadar's Managing Editor for news, shaping the news strategy across the team. I started my journalistic career while getting my degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick, where I also worked as Games Editor on the student newspaper, The Boar. Since then, I've run the news sections at PCGamesN and Kotaku UK, and also regularly contributed to PC Gamer. As you might be able to tell, PC is my platform of choice, so you can regularly find me playing League of Legends or Steam's latest indie hit.