Apple is dropping its commission rates on the Chinese App Store starting March 15. Standard in-app purchase fees go from 30% down to 25%. Developers in the App Store Small Business Program and Mini Apps Partner Program get a cut too; their rates fall from 15% to 12%.
The company said the change came after “discussions with the Chinese regulator,” almost certainly the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR). SAMR had previously been weighing a full antitrust investigation into the App Store. China’s state-owned Economic Daily reported that the reduced fees could save local developers around 6 billion yuan ($873 million) a year.
