What you need to know
- The App Store is expanding to twenty new countries.
- Apple made the announcement on its developer website.
- Countries being added include Iraq, Lybia, and Morocco.
Today, Apple announced on its Developer website that the App Store will be expanding to twenty new countries starting next month.
Apple says that, to date, the App Store has generated over $155 billion in earnings for developers for apps that are currently available in up to 155 countries and regions. Now, developers will have a chance to expand their impact even further in twenty new markets.
"Thanks to the creativity and innovation of developers like you, the App Store has become much more than the world's safest marketplace. It's grown into a vibrant platform with great apps that influence culture and change lives, with over half a billion visitors each week. This wide-reaching platform has helped generate over $155 billion in developer earnings — just from sales of apps and in-app purchases. Today, the App Store gives you the opportunity to connect with users in 155 countries or regions. We're pleased to announce that the App Store will expand even farther this year with upcoming support for 20 new countries, allowing you to increase your impact and grow your business in new markets."
There are some steps that developers need to take in order to ensure their apps are available to users when the App Store launches in these new countries. Apple recommends that developers complete the necessary steps by April 10, 2020, in order for their apps to be available right away.
"To allow your app to appear in these new countries, your membership Account Holder first needs to accept the updated Program License Agreement by signing in to their account on the Apple Developer website. If you have a Paid Applications Agreement, the Account Holder will also need to accept this updated agreement in App Store Connect. You can then select the "New Countries or Regions" checkbox in the Pricing and Availability section of your app information page to automatically make your app available in all new countries. Completing these steps by April 10, 2020 will help make sure your app is ready to be published as content initially becomes available across new locations. We'll let you know when you can choose from specific new countries and update the default subscription pricing for these locations."
The countries that the App Store is starting to come to in the next month include Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Gabon, Georgia, Iraq, Lybia, Kosovo, Maldives, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nauru, Rwanda, Serbia, Tonga, Vanuatu, and Zambia.
