Apple officially extended its service offerings to dozens of new countries on Tuesday, making the App Store, iCloud, Apple Podcasts, Apple Music and Apple Arcade available in Rwanda. This means that more Apple users are able to access some of key features of its devices such as downloading and uploading - and selling - apps, access to the cloud storage, and access to millions of songs and podcasts as well as video game subscription. In addition to Rwanda, in Africa, the Apple services were introduced in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Gabon, Libya, Morocco, and Zambia. In total, the expansion reaches 20 new countries worldwide while Apple Music, the tech giants music and video streaming service, was made available in 52 new markets largely in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. According to a statement, users in the new markets can expect local content that is geographically appropriate. When it announced the plan last month, Apple said that the move was part of its strategy to expand to as many markets to serve its users. Expanding its services to new markets opens up fresh revenue streams. Previously, Apple has been criticized for its ironic business line of selling its iPhones and Macs where users wont access full benefits of the prestigious brands. One of the worlds wealthiest tech company was blamed to care less about its clients from small markets, forcing users from such markets to resort to shortcuts such as using fake accounts to be able to purchase apps or extra iCloud storage. With the development, the App Store, which registers over half a billion visitors each week, is now available in 175 countries and regions from 155 worldwide. The move allows users of iOS operating system exclusive access to a store that features over 2.2 million apps, ranging from free, free with in-app purchases and paid. Also, developers from the new regions will be authorised to publish and monetise their apps built with iOS software development kit on the platform. The platform has helped generate over $155 billion in developer earnings — just from sales of apps and in-app purchases. In September last year, the company launched Apple Arcade alongside Apple News and TV to diversify and grow the firms sources of revenue which heavily relied on its App Store app.
