Apple Reportedly Plans to Cut App Store Fees for Subscription Video Apps

Apple is reportedly gearing up to cut the amount it charges from video streaming services in half on App Store, a move said to be in-sync with the company's upcoming TV app plans.

Bloomberg is reporting that the move to reduce the amount from video streaming service from current 30 percent to 15 percent citing people familiar with the plans. The move could be seen as an attempt to woo video service providers like Netflix, Amazon, and HBO among others to join Apple's new initiative.

Notably, Apple has been long criticised for charging a hefty amount on video streaming services on the App Store. The reduction in amount will be applicable to users who have at least paid for a year's subscription. Apple is extending the "rate to all subscription video services as long as they are integrated with Apple's new TV app," claims the report. It adds that some video partners are already paying Apple just 15 percent of monthly subscription fees.

To recall, Apple launched the new app, simply called TV, which will be released to Apple TV, iPad, and iPhone for free later this year, and it unifies the content that users buy and subscribe to across multiple services.

The report says that Apple plans to officially release the new TV app next month and it will be dedicated to TV shows and movies. The new app will show movies and live events sorted and organised within the TV app's interface.

At its MacBook Pro event last month, Apple showcased the TV app and confirmed that people will be able to use Siri to launch into a video just by its name, or by the name of a channel or service, or even by the name of a sports team.

The report adds that Apple delayed its plans to launch TV app after it faced difficulty getting rights from programmers and broadcast networks.