Apple Inc. has made a bold move against WeChat, the self proclaimed "App For Everything." This September Apple told various Chinese social networking apps, including the extremely popular WeChat, to remove their tipping function or give 30% of these payments to them. Apple currently takes 30% of the revenue from all other in-app purchases, so tips will simply be treated in the same manner. China is already the biggest market for in-app purchases with a record $2 billion of earnings in the fourth quarter of 2016. Despite this success, Apple's overall revenue and market share are falling in China. By taking this tip money Apple hopes to improve its stability in the world's most populated nation.
However this change is unlikely to help improve Apple's position in China. WeChat is extremely popular in China and many citizens would rather carry a different phone then abandon the app. Furthermore, WeChat already has a significantly larger user base then ios. If Apple gets what they want WeChat will lose functionality; either the user cannot tip or received tips will be worth 30% less then what the user paid. Apple's struggle with WeChat may even cause this popular app to boycott the App Store and its loyal users will be forced to switch to Android, the largest mobile operating system. Ultimately Apple may be sacrificing the entire WeChat user base for the sake of slight increase in revenue.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-tip-for-apple-in-china-your-hunger-for-revenue-may-cost-you-1495100964
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