Apple's rule change allowed its advertising business to triple market share

Apple's share of the iPhone app advertising market has more than tripled in six months, analysts said. By changing the privacy policy for its smartphones, the company has "dazzled" Facebook, Google and Twitter, the expert said

Apple has more than tripled its market share of iPhone app advertising in six months, the Financial Times reported. The newspaper notes that the company has prevented competitors from using targeted advertising by changing its privacy policy for its smartphones.

We are talking about the service Search Ads, which allows you to buy advertising space in the App Store so that a mention of the application appeared above the search results, points out the FT. For example, users who enter the name Snapchat in the search bar may see TikTok as the first result. Now Search Ads is responsible for 58% of all iPhone app downloads resulting from clicking on ads, while a year ago the figure was 17%, the newspaper said, citing Branch, a company that measures the effectiveness of mobile marketing.

Advertising with Apple became more attractive after the company announced it would no longer track user data by default for advertising purposes, Grant Simmons, who works at analytics firm Kochava, told the FT. He noted that the move "blindsided" companies like Facebook, Google, Snap, Yahoo and Twitter.

In addition, since April, data on the reaction of users to advertising, which used to be detailed and transmitted in real time, became generalized and are transmitted with a delay of up to 72 hours, writes FT. While those using Apple's service receive detailed information.

The market for app advertising is growing rapidly, notes the FT. Spending on app marketing for iPhone and Android smartphones totaled $58 billion in 2019 and will reach $118 billion by next year, the newspaper writes, citing the analytics company AppsFlyer. Apple is likely to make $5 billion this fiscal year and $20 billion a year over the next three years thanks to its advertising business, the newspaper noted, citing researchers at Evercore ISI.

Apple told the FT that privacy features are designed to protect users. "The technologies are part of one comprehensive system designed to help developers implement safe advertising practices and protect users, not to give Apple an advantage," the company said in a statement.