Starting November 2024, Apple will enforce a significant policy shift that could impact creators and fans using the Patreon app on iOS devices.
The tech giant is requiring Patreon to switch to its in-app purchase system for all transactions made through the iOS app. Failure to comply could result in Patreon being removed from the App Store entirely.
Patreon has long been a platform that empowers creators to monetize their work on their own terms, providing flexible options that cater to a diverse range of needs. However, Apple’s latest mandate threatens to upend this flexibility.
As part of Apple’s App Store policies, all iOS transactions must now be processed through their in-app purchase system, which comes with a 30% fee. This fee will apply to any new memberships or purchases made within the Patreon iOS app, affecting creators’ earnings.
Additionally, Apple’s in-app purchase system only supports subscription billing. As a result, creators who currently use first-of-the-month or per-creation billing models will be forced to switch to a subscription-based model to continue earning revenue from iOS users.
To help creators navigate these changes, Patreon has developed an optional tool that can automatically adjust prices within the iOS app to account for Apple’s 30% fee. This feature ensures that creators continue to earn the same amount per membership as they do on other platforms.
However, creators are not required to use this tool and can choose to absorb the fee themselves, though this would reduce their earnings from iOS transactions.
Patreon emphasizes that Apple’s fee will only impact new memberships purchased through the iOS app starting in November 2024. Existing memberships will remain unaffected.
For creators currently using first-of-the-month or per-creation billing, the migration to subscription billing will begin automatically in November 2024.
To keep creators informed and supported, Patreon will host a Q&A session on Discord from August 12th to August 16th, 2024, providing a platform for creators to ask questions and share their concerns.
Want to see more of our stories on Google?
P.S. Want to keep this site truly independent? Support us by buying us a beer, treating us to a coffee, or shopping through Amazon here. Links in this post are affiliate links, so we earn a tiny commission at no charge to you. Thanks for supporting independent Canadian media!
I find it fascinating that smaller business with apps generally follow the rules, pay the cost of using Apple’s services without complaining much… while these bigger companies circumvent the rules and don’t pay the same until finally told they aren’t allowed to anymore, and then complain about it like they’re being explicitly picked on.
It has a real, “rich person complaining about a closed income tax loophole so they have to pay at least the same tax rate as people making 1/10 their salary” vibe.
Nobody likes to pay more “taxes” but while there have been loopholes, Apple’s charged the same rate since the App Store started, and has actually halved it under certain circumstances, Patreon being one of those after the first year.
I just dislike the rhetoric that they feel blindsided by these fees. This isn’t a teenager seeing the payroll deduction on their first ever paycheque…
And I realize this is kind of a business within a business within a business kind of structure so it hits the exact 1/10 people (sometimes) that I’m referencing… it still holds true. I bet you Patreon takes a cut from creators for using their services too.