How Publishers Are Dealing With Apple’s In-App Subscription Policies

Apple’s deadline for app owners to run content subscriptions through iTunes or not at all may have passed on June 30, but compliance is emerging unevenly - or not at all.

A month after the deadline elapsed, e-book vendors and The Wall Street Journal last week became compliant by sending subscription transactions within their own apps or through links to web-based sign-ups and, in Google Books’ case, by exiting the App Store entirely before returning with a compliant app. Publishers on iOS are no longer allowed to sell subscriptions within their apps using the in-app purchasing technology unless they give Apple a 30 percent cut of the transaction, and they also have to allow Apple control the personal data of subscribers. But others remain in breach and, in one case we heard, have not even yet been asked directly to comply. It all suggests ongoing negotiations between operators and Apple over the thorny issue. Here’s a brief list of how some major publishers have dealt with the deadline.