APP STORE SUSPENDS GAMBLING ADS AFTER CRITICISM FROM DEVELOPERS
At the end of October, Apple announced a new feature in the App Store: developers can advertise their applications on pages with other apps in the "You may also like" section.
However, this innovation soon caused a flurry of criticism. At first, the Twitter audience sounded the alarm, with users complaining in droves about inappropriate app ads and posting screenshots. For example, on the page with the application for children, users could find ads for live casino which you can find at twinspinca.com or sports betting. Most of the complaints were related to gambling.
The developer community also accused Apple of anti-competitive behavior. In order to prevent the competitors' advertisements from being displayed on their pages, the creators of applications will have to display ads of their own apps on their own pages.
In this regard, spokesman Trevor Kincaid announced that Apple, in response to criticism from developers and users, is suspending the display of ads for gambling and other adult products. It's not clear yet, whether this means that such content won't be shown at all or Apple's team plans to improve advertising algorithms so that from now on, such ads will be shown only to interested users.
Apple's decision on this issue will greatly affect the future of the company. The fact is that Apple is planning to expand advertising beyond the App Store. According to reports, in the future, it is planned to be introduced in Maps, Podcasts, and Books. So far, the experience with advertising in the App Store shows that the company has approached the issue irresponsibly. Just imagine what would happen if a person looking for a gambling addiction help center on the map saw a casino ad.
So the company still has to work on algorithms in the ads and find a balance between profits and responsible customer service. Last August, Bloomberg revealed that Apple wants to increase its current advertising revenue by at least three times. But it looks like those plans aren't destined to come to fruition just yet. Fortunately, the problem is not so unsolvable. Many other companies, such as Google, face the same difficulties, and some ideas can be borrowed from them.