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Apple App Store Prices Rise in UK, India and Turkey (bbc.com)
Apple is to put up the price it charges for apps in the UK, India and Turkey. From a report on BBC: UK costs will numerically match those of the US, meaning that a program that costs $0.99 will now be 99p. That represents a 25% rise over the previous currency conversion, which was 79p. "Price tiers on the App Store are set internationally on the basis of several factors, including currency exchange rates, business practices, taxes, and the cost of doing business," it said. "These factors vary from region to region and over time." The rise will also affect in-app purchases but not subscription charges. The cost of a $0.99 app will become 80 rupees in India, representing a 33% rise from the previous price of 60 rupees.
Translation: We've been pissing over our users so much that they're starting to get annoyed with us and sales are tapering off, so we're gonna raise the "exchange" prices instead to offset that.
With the Pound now trading at around $1.23, and the UK app store incorporating VAT at 20% while the US store doesn't include sales tax in the list priced, this sounds about right. Certainly the "UK premium" is nothing like the 50-100% that wasn't uncommon a decade or so ago.
Apple look simply to be pricing in the devaluation in Sterling that has occurred since the beginning of Brexit. I'm not sure anyone can find much to fault with that. The real question is how quickly Apple will move to reduce prices if/when the Pound recovers?
because people apparently can't function without apps on their phone, or even use it to place and receive calls and messages. You don't need apps to be happy!
With the U.K.'s break from Europe, the U.S. has already begun grooming the country to be an extension of its markets, and politics. I think for every year that passes from now, services and goods, and their qualities, will more and more look like those offered in the U.S.
If Scotland and Wales want to keep the quality of life as they know it, they had better vote to remain in the EU soon.
Well that just makes no sense, whatsoever.
[citation needed]
its basically charging arbirtarily different prices in different regions and pocketing the difference.
It costs different amounts of money just to do business in different regions. Why should the prices not reflect this? With their stronger consumer protection laws, it has to be more expensive to do business in the UK.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Numerical matching is doing nothing more than making the number 99 appear everywhere, as if currency conversions and other taxes are suddenly and magically irrelevant. I guess the only thing that's truly irrelevant is giving a shit about the impact.
Apple sure has one hell of an arrogant way of defining courage. I'd respect them a lot more if they were just honest about the change and said "Fuck You, that's why."
That's only four red rupees. It's rather easy to get even with the wooden sword.
_That's_ why revenues soared 40% as they told us in the other article here.
If you really think this change has anything to do with their actual business cost, I have a bridge you may be interested in.
"numerically match" is the new phrase of the moment, presumably. It's laughable.
If you really think this change has anything to do with their actual business cost, I have a bridge you may be interested in.
Oh yes, yes I think it does. I think the former pricing had nothing to do with actual business cost, but what the market would bear during the introductory period.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
its basically charging arbirtarily different prices in different regions and pocketing the difference. I am sure a US app maker will still get paid in USD.
As an app developer, I can correct your incorrect assumptions.
Apps on the app store come in different "price tiers" from free, to $0.99, to $1.99 etc. Apple translates these prices for countries other than the USA. Mostly this is done by multiplying or dividing by the exchange rate, adding VAT where necessary, and rounding to a nice even amount (if they calculated the correct price should be £2.04 or £1.94, then the actual price will be £1.99, for example).
When the customer pays, Apple removes the VAT which they pay to the tax office of that country, takes their 30% or 15% cut, and then converts the money into the currency of the developer, and that's the amount paid.
Apple also tries to keep the prices constant for long times - they could have done the UK change six months ago, so for six months UK citizens actually got a rebate.
The users pay a fair price - each user pays an amount so that the same money ends up in the developer's pockets. So users are not "fucked". And developers get roughly the same amount of money wherever you buy an app. Right now, developers got 20% less if you bought in the UK instead of the USA, for example, and that has now been corrected.
That is one of the markets where they are at par with the Windows Phones. Granted that the latter has taken a body blow with the end of the Lumia, but they're not gonna increase market share much that way
Correction: users *are* fucked. Just not by Apple in this case.
++ Say to Elrond "Hello.".
Elrond says "No.". Elrond gives you some lunch.
Life was hard enough for gays anyway without having to pay more for gay phone apps
Wait, all this is doing is shifting VAT and taxes from the developer's burden to the purchaser?
Why the fuck did the article not say this? I already know why, because making the taxes fair would not generate outrage and clicks. I have been duped.
I'm a good cook. I'm a fantastic eater. - Steven Brust
Apps on the app store come in different "price tiers" from free, to $0.99, to $1.99 etc. Apple translates these prices for countries other than the USA. Mostly this is done by multiplying or dividing by the exchange rate, adding VAT where necessary, and rounding to a nice even amount (if they calculated the correct price should be £2.04 or £1.94, then the actual price will be £1.99, for example).
In what plane of existence is 1.99 "a nice even amount"?
No - there is no change in where the burden of taxation/VAT lies. Apple have always incorporated sales tax into app store prices.
This is a correction owing to currency devaluations.
The UK Pound is now worth about 25% less than it was six months ago when compared to the US Dollar, therefore they've corrected the GBP prices of apps to reflect the current exchange rate.
Ok I guess I am confused. I though the article says that they are "synchronizing prices" such that a .99 USD app in the US will cost .99 GPB in the UK.
I'm a good cook. I'm a fantastic eater. - Steven Brust
since when is £1.99 'even' ? it's and advertising/marketing price.