Apple has expanded its App Store advertising infrastructure in an effort to increase digital revenues and provide more visibility to developers. Apple Search Ads advertising platform, which has been launched in 21 new countries, including Turkey, aims to provide users with access to more relevant content and offers developers the opportunity to highlight their applications. This expansion is considered an important step in Apple’s advertising strategy.
Apple Search Ads offers developers four different ad display models. Ads can appear in the “Today” tab, on the search page that appears before users search, at the top of search results, and at the bottom of other app pages. This diversity makes it easier for ads to reach different users. Users in Turkey now started to see these ads in search results and application pages. Adding a blue “ad” label under the ads stands out as a carefully designed detail to help users distinguish these contents from organic results.
New advertising model opens opportunities for small developers
Apple describes this advertising infrastructure as a more accessible option for developers. According to the company’s statement, ads provide twice as much visibility as organic results, which increases the competitiveness of small-scale developers in particular. Since Apple Search Ads operates on a cost-per-click model, developers only pay when their ads are clicked. This presents an attractive option for developers who want to use their advertising budgets more efficiently.
However, the new advertising model brought with it some controversy. In particular, the fact that the ads shown at the bottom of application pages may belong to sensitive categories such as gambling has led to criticism among developers and users. Following these criticisms, Apple took some steps to regulate advertising content and imposed restrictions on certain categories. However, it is clear that a balance must be struck between the benefits that ads provide to users and the content that disturbs them.
Launching the advertising infrastructure in Turkey will open a new channel for both local developers and users. While developers will have the opportunity to deliver their applications to more users, users will also be able to access the content they are looking for faster. However, the proliferation of advertisements stands out as an element that needs to be carefully monitored in terms of how it will affect the user experience. In particular, the quality and frequency of advertising content are among the factors that will determine the success of Apple’s strategy.