Apple enabled “reader” apps earlier this year, allowing customers to check in and pay for a subscription over external connections from sources other than the App Store. Netflix is adding a feature to its iOS app that directs users to its website when they wish to sign up for a new membership.
According to 9to5Mac, the Netflix app now uses the new iOS API for reader apps, which redirects users to an external website before completing a subscription. The exact date that Netflix began making this option available to iPhone and iPad users is uncertain, but according to reports, the deployment is now allegedly global.
When you click the subscribe button, the notification “you’re about to leave the app and travel to an external website” displays. The app explicitly states that all subscriptions should be managed on Netflix’s platform and that Apple is no longer in charge of the transaction.
After selecting Continue, you can enter your personal data, choose a payment method, and register for a Netflix plan on the Netflix website. This indicates that after the first year, Netflix is exempt from paying the recurring subscription cost of 15% levied for each subscription obtained through an iOS app.
This commission is lower than the typical 30% commission. It’s crucial to understand that Apple defines reading programs as those that offer digital material as their major features, such as periodicals, newspapers, books, radio, music, or videos.
Despite this adjustment, Netflix has long since given up on in-app subscriptions. In a 2018 update to the iOS app, the option to subscribe to Netflix directly through the provider’s official iPhone and iPad applications was removed. It should come as no surprise that Apple tried to prevent Netflix from requiring iOS customers to sign up for a Netflix plan through Safari.
Apple has finally let numerous app categories provide alternative subscription methods outside the App Store without having to pay a commission to the company, thanks to prior antitrust investigations. In a number of countries, including the Netherlands and South Korea, Apple has recently been forced to permit third-party payment methods in App Store apps.
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