Apple may expand its advertising to more of its own apps on the iPhone in an effort to boost revenue, according to .
According to the report, the company generates about $4 billion in annual revenue from its advertising business, but wants to grow the segment in double digits.
The company already shows ads in some apps, like Apple News and Stocks. It also recently announced plans for .
Bloomberg reported that the company is considering ways to add advertising to Apple Maps while searching for restaurants and stores. The report says it’s “likely” that Apple will also insert in-store ads for podcasts and books.
Last year, Apple released an update for iPhone with a new pop-up asking users if they wanted to allow apps on their phones to target ads to the user. The privacy feature, called App Tracking Transparency, has altered the behind-the-scenes mechanics of many mobile ads, especially those that confirm whether a purchase or download has taken place.
It’s clear that most iPhone users opted out, and the feature has presented major challenges for companies ranging from Snap to Facebook to Peloton.
The new ads could help Apple get more value from iPhone users.
Analysts at Needham wrote in an Aug. 3 note that they believe Apple’s next big moneymaker is in advertising.
They also said they believe Apple is in the early stages of building a new mobile advertising platform. They explained that they have seen a “remarkable increase” in the company’s hiring efforts for its advertising platform and that it was highly visible at the Cannes Lions advertising festival in June.
On Apple’s most recent earnings call, CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri said the company’s ad business experienced some Covid-related difficulties, but Cook said it’s an “excellent” discovery tool for developers. of apps who want to promote their apps.
Analysts at Bernstein said Apple’s services business, which is driven primarily by advertising and the App Store, has seen a slowing growth rate for four straight quarters as the App Store has seen a shift in spending from the consumers.
However, they said they expect Apple’s ad business to grow due to a higher ad load on the App Store.
“Overall, we believe that growth of at least 20% can be achieved for Apple’s general advertising segment in the coming years,” they said.
