Even though Apple talked about an anti-Google stance on serving ads back in April, it seems they haven’t actually banned anything…yet. It’s not just a ban on Google, but a ban on ad companies collecting usage data from applications, which would make it almost impossible to create or serve targeted ads and compete with Apple’s iAd service. These limitations were relaxed at the beginning of June, allowing these ad networks to collect data, but it was still believed that Google would still be barred from actually serving any ads. It turns out that Google /Admob ads are showing up just fine.
Software developers say their new and updated applications are getting approved by Apple, even though the apps are enabled to serve ads by third-party ad networks such as Google’s Mobile Adsense and AdMob.
Apple and Google have both declined to comment on the situation. The answer could lie in the fact that the Feds are already looking into iAds and Apple’s anti-Google policy. iAds works with brands to create and distribute interactive ads inside of applications. Apple charges $1 million to $10 million to iAds customers, giving 60% of the revenues to the developers.
While Apple’s changes in policy did not explicitly name Google, it seemed obvious that they would prevent Google from conducting business around the Apple platform and Google even publicly criticized Apple. Barring third-party ad networks while launching their own is definitely not a good move by Apple and it’s easy to see why the Federal Trade Commission has pricked up their ears and taken at look in Apple’s direction.
While some developers took a chance at getting their apps blocked, others completely avoided third-party ad networks. iAds is actually more lucrative for developers as it charges the advertiser a penny when the ad is viewed and $2 when the ad is clicked. This is a better return to developers, who usually expect fractions of a penny for clicks and views.
The real question is whether Apple has the right to block these other ad networks. They are creating a monopoly, but it’s limited to their own ecosystem of apps and devices. On the other hand, should they be able to create such restrictions on developers? It will be interesting to see what they do here as one false move could bring them a world of trouble.