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Sensor Tower · Seema Shah · December 2022
MMM: Elon Musk Criticize App Store Fees
Elon Musk has criticized Apple's 30% developer fees on in-app purchases, which have generated an estimated $23bn in revenue for the tech giant in 2022. While Musk's Twitter Blue has only paid a small amount in fees, the mobile gaming industry is most exposed to such charges, with games accounting for 57% of in-app purchases on the Apple App Store and 73% on Google Play. Meanwhile, cybersecurity is driving growth for identity and authenticator software platform Okta, with its mobile app seeing a 44% YoY increase in monthly active users.
Key Takeaways:
Apple’s hefty developer fees (~30%) on in-app purchases are once again a point of contention, with Elon Musk criticizing the practice in a series of tweets last week. Although Elon was quick to feud with the tech behemoth after it briefly pulled advertising on Twitter, the issue has largely been resolved
Per Sensor Tower estimates, consumers have spent $78bn YTD on in-app purchases and subscriptions on the Apple App Store vs. $38bn on Google. With presumed 30% marketplace fees, Apple has roughly generated $23bn in revenue (2022 YTD)
Though Musk and Twitter are relatively new to paying Apple's marketplace fees (Twitter Blue, launched in Jun’ 21, made ~$1.15mn in Nov’ 22), the mobile gaming industry has the greatest exposure to such fees
Per Sensor Tower estimates, as of 2022 YTD, mobile games made up ~57% and ~73% of all in-app purchases made on the Apple App and Google Play Stores, respectively, compared to 5% on each for social networking apps
Rising importance of cybersecurity to enterprises is a tailwind for identity and authenticator software platform Okta, driving continued growth of its core business
Per Sensor Tower estimates, MAUs on the Okta Verify mobile app were up 44% YoY (8% QoQ) over 3Q FY’23 (Aug’22-Oct’22 data)
Okta’s 3Q FY’23 reported subscription revenue was up 38% YoY while Total Customers were up 22%
For more information, request the full report from reports@sensortower.com.
