After a drawn out and very public fight, Apple has approved the email app Hey for the App Store. Hey is a new paid email app from the company behind project management software Basecamp, whose CTO made very public his distaste at Apple demanding 30% of Hey’s revenue from in-app purchases.
Hey works by downloading from the App Store but only being able to sign up on the web. Apple said it needed to have the option to sign up on the app itself and the set up was against Apple guidelines. Apple said the app had originally been approved in error, and SVP Phil Schiller told TechCrunch that he wouldn’t budge on the decision.
But Hey CTO David Heinemeier Hansson embarked on a Twitter campaign pointing out what he thought was an unjust way for Apple to run its App Store, and it appears he has won out. Hey will now be approved, but without in-app purchases. Hey reportedly got around Apple’s App Store requirement for in-app purchases unlocking features of an otherwise free app download by offering a free trial option.
In a new tweet, Heinemeier Hansson said Apple had “definitely approved” the app after it was agreed that no in-app purchases also means Apple can’t claim a 30% share of its revenue.
Apple has definitively approved HEY in the App Store!! No IAP, no 30% cut, but we’ve opened the door to a free temp address service, and use same app for work accounts. I’m so incredibly relieved! And now HEY is open to EVERYONE! No invite code needed 🎉❤️ https://t.co/J7OCCTFX2Z
— DHH (@dhh) June 25, 2020
Other iOS developers have had to live with Apple’s 30% demand but have not had the platform – or gumption – to complain this loudly before. For context in the history of platform revenue share with the distributor, 30% is less than older demands of platform owners. But that hasn’t stop people piling onto Apple, and it appears the company has relented.
Hey’s email service costs $99 per year but promises a more organised approach including first-time approval for mail from people, tiers of importance, and a reply later function to stop email piling up and stressing you out. It’s available cross-platform.
Author: Henry Burrell, Phones Editor
Henry is Tech Advisor’s Phones Editor, ensuring he and the team covers and reviews every smartphone worth knowing about for readers and viewers all over the world. He spends a lot of time moving between different handsets and shouting at WhatsApp to support multiple devices at once.