IAd

For other uses, see IAD.

iAd

Product type	Mobile advertising
Owner	Apple Inc.
Country	United States
Introduced	July 1, 2010
Discontinued	June 30, 2016
Markets	World
Website	www.developer.apple.com/iad

iAd was a mobile advertising platform developed by Apple Inc. for its iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad line of mobile devices allowing third-party developers to directly embed advertisements into their applications. ^[1] iAd was part of Apple's iOS 4. The platform launched in 2010 and was discontinued in 2016.

History

iAd was announced on April 8, 2010 during an event previewing iOS 4. ^[2] It was later released on July 1, 2010. ^[3] Hosted and sold by Apple, the iAd platform was expected to compete with Google's AdMob mobile advertising service. ^[4]

Similar to AdMob, iAd facilitated integrating advertisements into applications sold on the iOS App Store. ^[5] If the user tapped on an iAd banner, a full-screen advertisement appeared within the application, unlike other ads that would send the user into the Safari web browser. Ads were promised to be more interactive than on other advertising services, and users were able to close them at any time, returning to where they left their app. Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs initially indicated that Apple would retain 40% of the ad revenue, in line with what he called "industry standard", with the other 60% going to the developers. The amount paid to developers was later increased to 70%. iAd was expected to benefit free applications as well. ^[6] The iAd App Network was discontinued as of June 30, 2016. ^[7]

Timeline

• March 2010 - acquisition of Quattro Wireless, which specializes in mobile advertising.
• April 8, 2010 - iAd is first announced.
• July 1, 2010 - launched iAd in iOS 4.0 for iPhone/iPod touch only.
• November 2010 - began serving iAds in iOS 4.2.1 for iPad.
• December 2010 - launched in the UK and France.
• January 2011 - launched in Germany.
• February 2011 - lowered the minimum advertising contract to $500,000 to attract smaller advertisers.
• July 8, 2011 - lowered the minimum advertising contract to $300,000. This is due to return to a few large customers who have gone to a competitor. In particular, Citigroup and American retailer JC Penney Company.
• February 2012 - lowered the minimum amount of advertising contract to $100,000. This is done to deal effectively with Google. ^{[8] [ clarification needed ]}
• April 2012 - developer share of advertising revenue increased to 70%. ^[8]
• June 2013 - lowered the minimum amount of advertising to $50. It was speculated this was done due to low fill rates. ^[9]
• January 2016 - Apple announced the iAd App Network (not iAd, just the advertise-your-app component) will be discontinued as of June 30, 2016. Apple disbands the iAd sales team. ^{[10] [11] [12]}
• June 2016 - The iAd App Network, an ads developer platform for the company's iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad devices, officially shut down. ^[13]

References

1. Graser, Marc (April 8, 2010). "Apple unveils iAd". Variety. Archived from the original on March 28, 2023. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
2. Stone, Brad (April 8, 2010). "Apple Edges Into Selling of App Ads". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved June 29, 2025.
3. "Apple to Debut iAds on July 1". Apple Newsroom. Retrieved June 29, 2025.
4. Ulanoff, Lance (April 12, 2010). "Apple iAd Platform: A Case of the Rich Getting Richer". PCMag. Archived from the original on November 21, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2010.
5. Krazit, Tom (April 8, 2010). "Apple strikes back at Google with iAd". CNet. Archived from the original on April 11, 2010. Retrieved April 21, 2010.
6. Foresman, Chris (April 8, 2010). "Multitasking (finally), iAd, and more coming in iOS 4.0". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on August 20, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2010.
7. Statt, Nick (January 15, 2016). "Apple confirms it's backing away from iAd on June 30th". The Verge. Archived from the original on December 8, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
8. Aimonetti, Joe. "Apple increases developer iAd revenue to 70 percent". CNET. Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
9. Edwards, Jim. "The Price Of Running A Campaign On Apple's Fancy Ad System Has Dropped From $1 Million To $50". Business Insider. Archived from the original on April 28, 2016. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
10. Paczkowski, John (January 13, 2016). "Apple To Disband iAd Sales Team". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
11. "Why Apple Is Killing Off its Advertising Business". Fortune. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
12. Rosoff, Matt. "Apple follows Microsoft out of the advertising business". Business Insider. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
13. Heine, Christopher (June 30, 2016). "As iAd Shuts Down, Apple May Be About to Get a Shot of Advertising Redemption". Adweek. Archived from the original on July 3, 2016. Retrieved July 7, 2016.

External links

• Official website