14 DAY TRIAL // Apple has started shifting from pricing in US dollars or euros to local currencies in the App Store in up to 9 countries this week. The transition to local currency will most likely expand to other countries that don’t have US dollars or euros as their national currency.
The pricing changes, which Apple announced through its iTunes Connect resource page a week ago, have gone into effect in Poland, according to Apple Insider. The euro pricing was replaced with zloty on Apple’s digital storefronts, including the iOS, Mac App Stores, iTunes and iBooks Store.
The local currency is applicable to services and subscriptions like iCloud and Apple Music, while some users have noticed a monetary benefit thanks to exchange rates. Some prices went down thanks to the conversion, but the difference isn’t major.
Apple implemented the same strategy a few months ago
Apple implemented the change in a number of countries part of the European Union which have yet to adopt the euro as their national currency. Thus, the switch from euro to local currency was made in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Romania.
The EU isn’t the only region where Apple transitioned to another currency, App Stores in Chile, Colombia, Croatia and Peru also shifted towards local currency. The company has announced that developers will receive their fees in local currencies once the change is implemented.
The move comes months after Apple applied the same strategy in countries like Egypt, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, Qatar, Tanzania and Vietnam. Prices were stated in US dollars before Apple switched to local currencies.
The transition should make it easier for users to make the decision to buy from Apple’s online stores, as they no longer need to convert the price to their local currency and then make the purchase. Apple’s shift to local currencies will most likely expand to other countries in the near future.