Microsoft Wants To Give Developers Larger Portion Of Store Purchase Revenue

As part of its Build event, Microsoft has announced its intention to provide developers with a greater share of the proceeds from their sales through the Microsoft Store. The reduction applies to all applications except games.

Microsoft writes that it will use a default percentage of 5 percent for consumer applications in the Store and in-app purchases, with the rest going to developers. That’s true in the event that someone makes the purchase through a direct link, or deep link in Microsoft’s wording. In the event that Microsoft gets in the way, for example by including the application in a Store collection or spotlight, or “any other Microsoft property,” the company takes a 15 percent share.

Under the current terms, Microsoft will charge a percentage of 30 percent for purchases and 15 percent for subscriptions. The changes are to be implemented “later this year,” the company announced. The new regime applies to purchases on Windows 10, the Windows Mixed Reality platform, Windows Phone and Surface Hub, with the exception of Xbox. Another exception is that games are excluded from the changes. They will continue to use the old price structure.