Apple Is Raising the Price of Apps in Select Locations
It’s just the way it goes. In order to cover the cost to develop an app, mobile designers will often offer an ad-free version for a small fee or a free version that has ads. However, iOS users may find that they’re paying more than they remember apps costing soon.
Apple is increasing the price of its mobile applications and in-app purchases in seven countries in response to currency fluctuations.
In an email sent to iOS app developers, Apple said that it needs to tweak and update the App Store’s prices sometimes, which is exactly what it’s doing in Canada, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, and South Africa.
“Subscriptions will not be interrupted in Canada, New Zealand, Mexico and Singapore. Shortly before their existing subscription renews, subscribers in these territories will receive an email from us to let them know about the price increase with the option to turn off their subscription. Subscribers in Russia and Africa will need to resubscribe at the new price,” said Apple in the email. “Israel will not be impacted, as auto-renewable in-app purchase subscriptions are not supported there.”
In the Canadian and New Zealand app stores, there are two new pricing tiers available. For example, Canada’s lowest Tier 1 pricing will increase from $1.19 CAD to $1.39 CAD, as Next Web reports.
While some may think that these price changes simply reflect currency fluctuations and normalize prices, they also can benefit developers. As <em>ZDNet</em> reports, VAT charges in Romania have now dropped from 24% to 20%, but app prices remain unchanged, which gives developers a little more for their content.
If you’re interested in your territory’s price changes, you can check them all out in Apple’s spreadsheet, which is available online. The price changes listed are based against the fluctuating US dollar.
