Apple has begun to cut checks for developers who are owed money as part of a $100 million App Store lawsuit settlement.
The payments have begun to arrive in the hands of developers who were part of a lawsuit that claimed Apple's App Store sales cut was impacting their ability to continue to run a successful business.
An App Store story
The group of App Store developers receiving payments is part of the Cameron et al v. Apple Inc. lawsuit. That lawsuit alleged that Apple's 30% cut of App Store payments was "profit-killing," with the company then settling for a cool $100 million. It later set up the Small Business Program that allowed smaller developers to keep more of their money — just 15% goes to Apple if the developer earns less than $1 million per year.
As for the checks, developers who earned that sum or less between June 4, 2015, and April 26, 2021, and submitted a claim in time, are beginning to receive their payouts. Court documents reported on by MacRumors say that around 67,000 people were eligible to submit a claim, but it isn't known how many were.
In the end, it seems likely not all of them actually did claim, with some developers reporting that they have received more than they expected as a result.
While the payments will no doubt be well received by developers, it could be said that the creation of the Small Business Program will be the biggest result of this lawsuit in the long run. It allows more developers to earn larger sums for their work, potentially allowing them to continue making the apps people use on iPhones, iPads, and Macs around the world.
The Small Business Program is home to developers who make some of the best iPhone apps that we all use every day, but it might not exist if it wasn't for Cameron et al v. Apple Inc.
