Apple removes apps from their Affiliate Program
Members of the iTunes Affiliate Program (myself included) received an email from Apple yesterday that announced iOS and Mac apps would no longer be included:
Affiliate Program App Store Updates
Thank you for participating in the affiliate program for apps. With the launch of the new App Store on both iOS and macOS and their increased methods of app discovery, we will be removing apps from the affiliate program. Starting on October 1st, 2018, commissions for iOS and Mac apps and in-app content will be removed from the program. All other content types (music, movies, books, and TV) remain in the affiliate program.
For more information on commission rates, please see our Commissions and Payments page on the Affiliate Resources site.
If you have questions, please visit our Helpdesk.
This is a disappointing development. When someone buys an app using one of the links on this site I earn a small commission. It’s not a lot of money but it does help cover some of the annual cost of operating this site. This loss of income won’t impact me much but there are bigger blogs and websites that will most likely be severally impacted by this change.
I think Apple may be overestimating the value of the new Mac and iOS App Stores. I can say that without a doubt the majority of the apps I’ve purchased have been the result of articles or reviews on sites such as The Sweet Setup, MacStories, Brett Terpstra, MacDrifter and the Mac Power Users podcast not the App Store.