Apple has published guidelines for non-fungible tokens for the first time, in addition to elaborating on the laws around cryptocurrency payments and exchanges.
Technology heavyweight This is the first time Apple has specified explicit guidelines for NFTs.
The new guidelines specify how NFT purchases will be taxed, what they can and cannot be used for, and when a cryptocurrency trading app may be published.
Apple added language to its App Store standards on October 24 that permits in-app purchases of NFTs but prohibits any NFTs bought elsewhere from being used for anything other than viewing.
It also permits applications to use in-app purchases to “sell and sell services” NFT-related services such as “minting, listing, and transferring.”
However, the technology business appears to be doubling down on its NFT “Apple tax” — which includes in-app NFT sales in its usual 30% commission rate for all purchases — by requiring all NFT purchases to be made in-app.
Apps will not be permitted to include “buttons, external links, or other calls to action” that could allow users to purchase NFTs without paying app store commissions. It also prohibits apps from employing unlocking mechanisms such as QR codes, cryptos, and cryptocurrency wallets.
The rules are implemented despite the fact that the company has been criticized for applying its 30% commission on NFT sales conducted via NFT marketplace apps including OpenSea or Magic Eden, a move that has been deemed “grotesquely overpriced” when compared to the average 2.5% commissions on NFT purchases.
Magic Eden stated that it pulled its service from the App Store after learning of the regulation, and other NFT markets have reduced the functionality of their applications so that users may only view their own NFTs.
Apple’s guidelines prohibit the use of cryptocurrencies for in-app purchases, allowing only the use of “valid payment methods” including debit or credit cards.
Apple’s existing policy on cryptocurrency trading apps proposed by exchanges including such Binance and Coinbase, where trades are not subject to the 30% “Apple tax,” is unaffected by the new restrictions.
However, additional text was added to explain that crypto exchange apps can only be sold in “countries or regions where the app has the appropriate licensing and permissions to offer a cryptocurrency exchange.”
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