iPhones might be about to get more ads, report claims
The iPhone might be about to get more ads throughout its operating system, according to a new report.
New changes could bring marketing to a host of Apple apps that are currently ad-free, such as its Maps and Podcasts app, according to a new report in Bloomberg.
Apple does already show some ads, in the App Store, which means that developers can pay money to Apple to have their own apps show higher up in results. Those ads could increase, to show not only in the search results but also on app pages and elsewhere within the App Store, the report also claims.
It also shows apps already inside of Apple News and the Stocks apps. Those ads are largely like those seen on other news websites, appearing between stories.
But ads might also come to other apps such as Books and Podcasts, the report claims. They could work in much the same way as the App Store, allowing publishers to have their books or podcasts appear higher up in the relevant apps, for instance.
Similarly, the Maps app could show ads, so that a restaurant could pay to appear at the top of the results when people search for their cuisine, for instance. That has already been explored inside of Apple, the report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman indicated.
The changes would be part of a plan that could see Apple boost its ad business from around $4 billion each year to double that, according to the Bloomberg report. Apple has promoted Todd Teresi, who runs its ad business, so that he reports directly to the company’s head of services, Eddy Cue.
Apple has a difficult and sometimes antagonistic relationship with ads and the ad industry. Last year, Apple introduced a new feature called App Tracking Transparency, or ATT, that stopped developers from tracking users between apps – and led to advertising companies such as Facebook-owner Meta and Snap to lose vast amounts of money.
It has also struggled in the past to launch its own ad business, in part because of a conflict with its approach to privacy. In 2010, it launched a system called iAds that allows developers to offer advertising in their apps – but it shut down in 2016.
