Following developer complaints, Apple decided to temporarily stop displaying gambling app ads on its App Store products pages. Earlier this week, the company introduced new placements for ads on the App Store, with Search Ads appearing on the front page and pages of related apps on the App Store.
While many of Apple’s ad decisions have been considered controversial, the said expansion did not sit well with app developers. The reason was that following the new ads display expansion, many irrelevant or ethically questionable ads were shown next to the apps of developers, with the unrelated content being marked as “You Might Also Like”. Some of the irrelevant ads that were often seen as related to different apps included advertisements from gambling companies.
Following the numerous complaints from app developers, Apple decided to put on pause the display of gambling ads as well as promotional content related to several other categories on the App Store.
New Apple Ads Expansion Prompted Gambling Ads Display on Unrelated App Pages on App Store
One of the latest changes on the App Store earlier this week caused quite an uproar among app developers. Apple announced that Search Ads can now appear on both the front page and the related app pages of different apps provided on the App Store. This latest expansion came after Apple announced earlier this year its plans to increase the number of ads on the App Store as advertisements have proven to be quite lucrative for the company.
While the Search Ads were previously shown only in search results, with the recent format, Search Ads will also be visible on the Today tab on the App Store. However, what seems to be more controversial is the decision to also display Search Ads on the bottom of app products’ pages on the App Store. While the same space was previously used to recommend related apps, now the content seen at the bottom of product pages will include paid placement.
App Developers Disapprove of Search Ads Changes, Apple Halts Gambling Ads as Response to Backlash
While this is not the first time Apple has made a controversial move to enjoy more lucrative outcomes, the recent Search Ads change did not appeal to many app developers. The main reason for the uproar was the decision to show ads on the bottom of app product pages where related recommendations were previously shown.
Most app developers were not pleased with the recent expansion as it would display gambling ads or apps of other unrelated sectors below their products on the App Store.
To quickly offer a solution to the issue, Apple announced that it will pause the display of ads related to gambling or several other questionable categories. What seems to worry developers, however, is the use of the word “pause” in Apple’s official announcement. That specific word suggests that this is a temporary measure rather than a long-term solution. As of now, Apple has not stated when it will resume the display of gambling-related ads and whether there will be long-term changes to its Search Ads policy.
