Apple tweaks international App Store pricing
What does a dollar get you in Apple's App Store these days? Not the same thing it may have gotten you yesterday if you're a non-U.S. buyer. As picked up by MacStories and MacRumors, Apple's rolled out sweeping pricing changes to content in its international App Stores. For some the change has been beneficial with app prices going down; for others, software has seen a price increase. An Apple spokeswoman told CNET the "minor" price adjustments are due to changes in foreign exchange rates and local tax laws in those countries. Those changes are limited to the App Store and the Mac App Store, and not the company's hardware, the person said. A report from 9to5mac from earlier today suggested that pricing on refreshed Apple hardware (specifically yet to be announced MacBook Airs, Mac Minis and white MacBooks) would be receiving price drops to coincide with changes in the U.S. exchange rate, with some models dropping in excess of $100. So how much of a change are we talking for software? MacRumors has charted out a handful of changes from six countries, notably the UK, Australia, Japan, Mexico, Switzerland and Norway. Of the bunch the UK, Mexico and Norway have seen price increases, with Australia, Japan and Switzerland seeing minor reductions. On smaller apps the adjustments have been reflected with just a few cents worth of difference from the original cost. With bigger ticket items (which are often found in Apple's Mac App Store), the change can be more noticeable.Apple's App Store turned three years old this week, coinciding with the launch of the iPhone 3G and iOS 2.0. Last week the company announced that more than15 billion apps have been downloaded from the App Store, which is up to 425,000 apps.
