WeChat is the only app a Chinese person needs in China, since it also includes ‘mini’ apps and games inside. But this has long posed a problem for Apple. While the company takes a fee for every app and game purchase made through its App Store, these WeChat apps and games didn’t go through the App Store, so Apple didn’t see a penny.
But that’s changing. WeChat owner Tencent has made a deal with Apple that will see the iPhone maker start to handle payments for WeChat games and apps in China, and for that it will take a 15% cut of every purchase, according to a new Bloomberg report.
This would potentially earn Apple multiple hundreds of millions of dollars each year, given how huge WeChat is in China. Negotiations between Apple and Tencent on the matter have apparently been going on for over a year.
The 15% fee is a concession on Apple’s part, since it usually takes 30% from app developers, but given the sheer size of this market and the fact it wasn’t making any money whatsoever before, it’s definitely a win. WeChat is used by 1.41 billion people each month.
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