Advertising Age reported the news, which included two other changes: a 70 percent cut of ad revenues for developers, up from 60 percent to compensate for lower ad rates, and the elimination of an additional fee each time a user taps an ad. Apple will now only charge a fixed rate per 1,000 ad impressions.
The changes come as Apple has seen its standing slide in the mobile advertising space. Google has the lead in that area, with a 24 percent share in 2011, up from 10 percent the year before, while Millennial Media held the number two spot at 17 percent and Apple came in third at 15 percent. Apple’s share was 19 percent in 2010.
Advertising Age noted that there are more than 300 million devices out there running iOS, with over half a million apps available, but Google has hit the 250 million device mark and has more smartphones activated in the US than Apple.