Apple Makes More Changes To iAd As It Hopes To Attract More Customers [Report]

Just under 18 months after its launch, Apple is set to make more changes to its iAd mobile advertising service in a bid to attract more customers. The Cupertino company is hoping to claw back some of the ground it's quickly losing to Google's AdMob service by reducing the initial buy-in to iAd, and changing the way in which advertisers pay.

Apple will lower the entry cost of its service to $400,000, according to a Wall Street Journal report, reducing the figure from the existing $500,000 buy-in. That's significantly lower than the $1 million buy-in Apple was asking when it launched the service in July of last year.

In addition, the company will reportedly change the way in which advertisers pay for clicks and views. It will introduce new caps on what it charges for each tap, with advertisers paying $10 every time an ad is viewed 1,000 times, and $2 every time an ad is tapped.

Furthermore, Apple will reportedly partner with OMD to launch a new training program to clients about mobile marketing. Firms including PepsiCo, Clorox, and JC Penney have already visited Apple's headquarters, and OMD is planning another trip with more clients in February.

The changes follow a report from research firm IDC, in which it was revealed that Apple had dropped into third place in the mobile advertising market behind Google and Millennial Media. That's in contrast to last year's report, in which Apple shared the top spot with Google.

[via 9to5Mac]