With Apple officially sharing the details of its new Wholesale Electronics Accessories App Store subscription plan, which lays the groundwork for Apple to take a 30-percent cut from publishers who sell content within their apps, we
electronic book reader were waiting for some reaction from content providers. Well, one, Rhapsody, has finally braved Apple's wrath and issued a statement saying Apple's new arrangement was "economically untenable." And while it didn't threaten legal action, it certainly hinted at it.
While Apple is giving publishers and content sellers several months (June 30) to remove any links within their apps to wholesale electronic gadgets outside-the-App
best ebook reader Store purchasing options, a major battle is brewing and it remains unclear just what heavyweights such as Netflix, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon, which has sold millions of e-books via its iPad and iPhone apps, will do. For iPad-centric publications like the
eBook Reader review recently launched The Daily, Apple's 30 percent is baked into the business plan. But this probably doesn't work for many content sellers that can't afford to have those percentages skimmed off sales. Whether there's a viable workaround for Starzmart companies or whether this is a negotiating tactic by Apple is unclear. But eventually this may develop into a game of chicken, with companies threatening to pull their apps from the App Store and initiate legal action while Apple continues to flex its muscles and demand what it feels is its proper due for creating a huge market.
As we said, Rhapsody hasn't quite played the pull-out card yet, but it seems to be moving in that direction. Should make for an interesting few months and I'm sure we'll be writing a lot more about this growing tussle as we get closer to June.
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