“As Apple reportedly weighs another ad network bid, some industry figures are skeptical of the company’s chances,” Patrick Kulp reports for Adweek. “Spurred by the success of search ads in the App Store, Apple is considering placing ads in apps like Pinterest and Snap as a way to supplement weakening device sales, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this month. But marketers say the Cupertino giant’s insistence on meticulous control over its walled-garden platform and hardline stance on user privacy make it hard for the company to make an attractive offer to advertisers.”
“Those were also the complaints that dogged Apple’s last attempt at an advertising platform, iAd, which was shuttered in 2016,” Kulp reports. “‘When you operate a robust advertising business you almost by definition have to cede a little bit of control over the user experience,’ said Mike Baker, CEO and president of marketing software firm Dataxu. ‘It’s not in the Apple DNA to cede control over user experience. So, therefore, advertisers can feel like second-class citizens—even more so than on other big platforms.'”
“A number of factors seem to have led Apple to soften that stance more recently, though. For one, Apple is generally shifting its attention to service offerings as consumers hang onto their phones for longer and drive down device sales,” Kulp reports. “A nearly $1 billion windfall from App Store promoted search ads last year—a figure on par with Snap’s entire estimated ad revenue—has also caught CEO Tim Cook’s eye, according to the WSJ.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple could sell ads, they just wouldn’t command good prices. Perhaps differential privacy is somehow the key?
SEE ALSO:
Apple looks to expand advertising business with new ad network for apps – June 2, 2018
Apple’s App Store revamp: Ads are coming – June 9, 2016
Apple revamps App Store, may not win over all developers – June 9, 2016
Gruber: Apple’s App Store changes likely to spawn slew of professional-caliber iPad apps – June 8, 2016
Apple to reveal App Store 2.0 at WWDC: New subscription model, search ads, and more – June 8, 2016