You don’t think of ads when you think of Apple. Google, yes–Google is an advertising giant. But Apple has a different reputation. It’s mostly considered a clean interface maker with sleek smart devices that service your needs while staying out of your business. Problem is, that’s not the way it really breaks down.
Apple just published new guidelines for all apps to be sold at iTunes. “Guidelines” is a gentle way of saying “requirements.” Starting now any app needs to include “Advertising Identifiers,” a way to track users across various apps and all things Apple–so advertisers can target you wherever you are. If your app doesn’t include the proper identifiers, Apple will reject it. Apple is making a big global push for its iAd network, which is similar to Google Adwords, allowing advertisers to choose an audience and a price and run ads to reach the desired audience. The real difference between Google and Apple’s efforts in this space is that Google’s Adwords program is device neutral, deriving its traction from search and content-specific placement on millions of websites. iAds work the same way, but populate across the Apple device network.
