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Apple Mini Apps Partner Program
- daeken 11mo ago> A qualifying mini app within the Mini Apps Partner Program is one that’s put out by a person or entity that’s not directly or indirectly controlled by you, nor under common control with you. I don't understand; if it's put out by someone else, how do I participate?
- paxys 11mo agoYou are the developer of an app. A "mini app" is content created by a 3rd party that you import into your app. The linked program ("Mini Apps Partner") is for you, not for the developer of the mini app.
- pdpi 11mo agoAs I understand it: Your app is a virtual arcade, that supports “mini app” arcade games published by other developers, that run inside your virtual cabinet. I make a game for your arcade, and players pay cash to add credits to my game. The status quo: Player pays £1, Apple takes their 30% cut, you get 70p, take another 30% cut, and give me 49p What this programme entails: player pays £1, Apple takes a 15% cut, you get 85p, and hopefully pass on some of that extra money to me too. The gotchas are: 1. it has to be your app and my mini game. This is about lightening the load of all the intermediaries, not about you cheesing an extra 15% 2. It has to be the player buying credits for my game specifically. If you sell “ArcadeBux” redeemable for credits on any game at your arcade, you’re not an intermediary, you’re the vendor.
- ChrisMarshallNY 11mo agoI have not had a chance (or, frankly, the desire) to read the full Ts&Cs, but I wouldn't be surprised if you (as an app host), will shoulder some of the accountability for bad mini-apps.
- wahnfrieden 11mo agoYou must submit all the apps for review.
- bradly 11mo agoRoblox model.
- jasongill 11mo agoThis article explains this new program for those (like me) who had no idea what a "mini app" was and why it matters: https://www.macrumors.com/2025/11/13/apple-announces-mini-apps-partner-program/ https://www.macrumors.com/2025/11/13/apple-announces-mini-ap... tldr: it will let Apple charge a commission (although at 15%, it's half the normal 30% rate for the app store) on popular web app games embedded in to WeChat for the Chinese market
- nixpulvis 11mo ago[flagged]
- testing22321 11mo agoI really detest Walmart too. OMG and Starbucks too. Amazon is the worst. And man oh man do I hate McDonald’s. You know what I do? I don’t give any of them a cent. Ever. It’s cool we can choose what is and is not part of our lives.
- sanex 11mo agoImagine if there were only two restaurants. You'd end up at McDonald's again.
- testing22321 11mo agoNo. I’d cook at home. I don’t have a phone.
- sanex 11mo agoHats off to you. I bet you don't have Instagram induced ADD or crippling anxiety.
- JumpCrisscross 11mo ago> bet you don't have Instagram induced ADD I mean, they don’t have a phone. So probably not.
- pcdoodle 11mo ago[flagged]
- sho_hn 11mo agoHN has always been about how to monetize, not the hacker ethos. Successful business models get a free pass for being successful.
- tomhow 11mo agoWe've banned this account. It's a repeat offender when it comes to breaching the guidelines, with several warnings over the years, and there's no way we can let a vile slur like this pass without consequence. We detached this comment from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45922815 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45922815 and marked it off topic.
- wyre 11mo agoIt seems like this might be Apple’s attempt at a version of alternative app stores, locked down by strict T&Cs. I opened up the comments hoping to see discussion amongst the people here with strong feelings about Apple’s walled garden, but it seems I’m too early to the party.
- yen223 11mo agoMaybe I'm cynical, but what I'm wondering is which country's regulation led to Apple being forced to do this
- wahnfrieden 11mo agoApple is going to profit tremendously off this. They did it in part because they will make billions from WeChat.
- xeonmc 11mo agoAnd Roblox
- chronciger 11mo ago> Maybe I'm cynical, but what I'm wondering is which country's regulation led to Apple being forced to do this Not Europe, that’s for sure. Most likely American “regulation” via cutthroat capitalism and attempt to copy WeChat’s success.
- nandomrumber 11mo agoIsn’t this what competition is supposed to like?
- riffraff 11mo agoHow's this competition if it's still using apple's payment infrastructure in apps that are shipped via apple's app store?
- polyomino 11mo agoForcing iPad support seems like tying. I wonder if this will finally get Instagram to release an iPad app.
- havaloc 11mo agoThey already did : https://www.inc.com/jason-aten/instagram-finally-gave-us-an-ipad-app-its-not-what-anyone-asked-for/91235389 https://www.inc.com/jason-aten/instagram-finally-gave-us-an-...
- wahnfrieden 11mo agoI expect this is also setting up for MCP marketplaces. There was evidence of upcoming macOS and iOS updates adding MCP support at a system level across apps. The rules talk about "scripts", not only games or apps. https://9to5mac.com/2025/09/22/macos-tahoe-26-1-beta-1-mcp-integration/ https://9to5mac.com/2025/09/22/macos-tahoe-26-1-beta-1-mcp-i...
- modeless 11mo agoRoblox still exempt, blatant favoritism continues
- Jaxkr 11mo agoRoblox pays the full 30%.
- modeless 11mo agoOnly for in app purchases of Robux. They are uniquely allowed to distribute their own app store (not based on HTML/JS applets) within the App Store, which is against the terms that every other Apple developer agrees to. And they are allowed to use a virtual currency that can be obtained elsewhere without an Apple Tax to pay for digital goods purchases inside an iOS app, bypassing the IAP system, again against the terms.
- benatkin 11mo agoAnother thing this is similar to is Google AMP, which provided predictible user experiences through heavy restrictions. I guess AMP is to Mini Apps what Google Glass is to Oculus.
- nandomrumber 11mo agoTry to find some high tensile analogies. These ones are looking a little strained.
- jim201 11mo agoNo excitement here for any “discount” announcements—just cynicism about our device freedoms being restricted by two duopolies.
- mappu 11mo agoTelegram have a big mini-apps platform. Chatbots are a major area to regulate. I don't see how it would be possible for Telegram (or Discord, or IRC clients...) to comply with this.
- leche 11mo agoCommoditizing Roblox and keeping payments inhouse. Smart idea