Apple Store VS Crypto Apps

Apple Store VS Crypto Apps

Source Node: 2624122

What do you think the worst job at Apple is?

  • Professional Greeter at the Apple Store
  • The employees at the Genius Bar
  • Literally designing new iPhones

Seriously, every new iPhone is just the previous iPhone with another camera lens. 🤣

But the worst job at Apple, at least according to the late-great Steve Jobs, is – Director of Apple’s iOS store.

Previous directors of the iOS stores have:

  • been followed
  • received death threats
  • threatened at the Apple HQ

The reason?

Apple is hella strict with what startups make it to its App Store.

get rejected by the Apple Store

There is one specific kind of app they are hella strict with → crypto apps.

The reason is that Apple thinks that [some] crypto trading apps are – Ponzi schemes. And they have a big problem with how these crypto apps work.

That’s ☝️ not us (or the founder of an exchange that didn’t get Apple’s App Store approvals talking), it’s Philip Shoemaker, the former director of Apple App Store, who originally crafted the App Store’s guidelines together with Steve Jobs.

Phillip Shoemaker about Crypto

When Shoemaker left Apple in 2016, the company’s App Store Guidelines were rewritten to be even more offensive against crypto companies. Even more offensive than Liverpool under Jürgen Klopp. 😬

That’s when Apple went all out against crypto companies.

These companies 👇

  • Uniswap
  • OpenSea
  • Coinbase Wallet

… have all had issues in the past with launching their app on the iOS store.

For instance: Uniswap, the decentralized exchange, launched its mobile wallet in March but Apple didn’t ✅ it because according to the App Store guidelines – Uniswap was not an “approved exchange.”

On top of this, any marketplace that offers buying and selling of crypto-related products like – tokens, NFTs, etc. prefers not to do so because of the – Apple Tax.

VCs Predict the End of Crypto Winter | Web3 Investment Trends

VC Investors in web3 and crypto verticals predict the end of “crypto winter” in Q4 2023 - Q1 2024, according to the new market report by InnMInd

What’s the Apple Tax?

No, it’s not the tax you’ve gotta pay if you walk into Starbucks and don’t have a Macbook Pro.

It’s the 30% fee that Apple takes from companies when their users pay for stuff on the iOS app directly.

That’s why most web2 and web3 companies take users OFF the app to the website to complete a purchase.

we don't do that here meme

Tim Cook and Co. had so much of a problem with this, that they prevented companies + iOS developers from:

⬇️ Placing a link in the iOS app

⬇️ Get the users out of the app

⬇️ Get the users to a website

⬇️ Complete the payment

Apple's 30% tax mandate is illegal?

But last week a judge told Tim Cook and Co. that – you’re already placing a mad 30% tax on people, and now you want to prevent them from not paying this tax.

You can’t do that bruh. 🤣

Well, the judge didn’t use those words exactly!

But he did say that Apple violated California’s Unfair Competition Law by forbidding app developers from using any alternative payment method besides those of the tech giant’s own App Store, which levies a 30% fee on most transactions.  

Especially for – crypto trading and NFT marketplace apps.

These companies specifically limit the degree of transactions an iOS user can do on the app.

Here’s how:

  • Redirecting them to the website
  • Signing a transaction on an external wallet

The goal 🏁 → To avoid paying the Apple tax.

What this will mean is – instead of tip-toeing around Apple’s anti-steering away policy, crypto companies can clearly direct users of the iOS app and to the website.

apple tax

This will allow users to:

  • buy and sell cryptos
  • mint and trade NFTs
  • degen around in doggy coins

But all of this will be still on a website, and not through a mobile app (at least not an iOS app lol)

InnMind’s take:

Redirecting users is a band-aid solution.

The proper solution would be to either:

Option 1 → remove the Apple tax (good luck convincing Tim Cook!)

Option 2 → use a different mobile terminal (hmm seems like a good option!)

One mobile terminal into web3 is the Solana SAGA phone, which dropped last month. It’s on Android and has web3 capabilities (including making NFTs outta pictures taken on the phone’s camera 🤣)

When will we see a web3 terminal for iOS devices?

Are you building something like this? Apply to pitch and get VC funding!


3 Crypto Trends from a16z “State of Crypto 2023” Report

We’ve read the 60-page “State of Crypto 2023” report by a16z crypto, and summarized for you the main takeaways, crypto trends and things to watch

Top 10 Web3 Focused Venture Capital Firms, Active in Q1 2023

Discover the top 10 active Crypto and Web3 VC firms, investing heavily in blockchain and crypto startups in Q1 2023, despite market challenges

Top 10 DeFi and Web3 infrastructure startups Revolutionizing the Industry in Q1 2023

Even in a bear market, DeFi and Web3 infrastructure sectors continue to attract significant VC interest, proving their resilience and potential.

Time Stamp:

More from In Mind