Apple will reportedly start showing ads inside Apple Maps on iPhone starting next year. The company is looking to generate more revenue from its ad business in the coming years.
Apple currently displays ads inside the App Store and certain apps like Apple News and Stocks.
Get ready to see ads in Apple Maps search results from next year
The Cupertino giant won’t show traditional ads inside Apple Maps. Instead, they will be paid search results similar to what you currently see in Google Search results. An app developer could pay Apple to appear at the top of the search results for certain search terms. The search ads would be similar to what the company already displays in the App Store search results.
In his Power On newsletter for Bloomberg, Mark Gurman says that Apple has started the “engineering work” to launch search ads in Apple Maps. He believes the company will implement them from next year.
Apple wants to make more money from ads
In July this year, Apple announced that it would soon start showing ads in the Today section of the App Store. Developers would be able to pay Apple to have their apps placed on the Today screen. This is the first screen iPhone and iPad users see when they open the App Store. The company also plans to display ads within app listings.
Apple employees have grappled with whether or not the corporation should offer ads in the App Store — and whether this opposed Apple’s messaging. Currently, App Store ads are limited to the Search section.
Apple’s ads business currently rakes in $4 billion per year. The company is looking to increase that to $10 billion annually in the coming years. And the best way to achieve this is by showing ads inside first-party apps.
