Today In Payments: Apple Eases Streaming App Commissions; Softbank Abandons WeWork Deal

In today’s top news, Apple will end its practice of taking a commission from streaming platforms operating on its devices, and Softbank pulled out of its $3 billion deal to purchase WeWork. Plus, the Boston Federal Reserve Chief said the U.S. jobless rate is poised to shoot up.

Apple Eases Streaming App Commissions

Apple has announced it will end its practice of taking a cut of streaming revenue from Amazon’s Prime Video and other such platforms for some services on iPhones and other devices. Previously, Apple had users pay solely through its own payment service, taking a cut of between 15 and 30 percent before passing the remainder onto a third-party service like Amazon.

SoftBank Abandons WeWork Deal; Lawsuit Likely

SoftBank pulled out of its $3 billion deal to purchase office sharing startup WeWork, but it will still do its part in the form of a $5 billion assistance to help with syndicated debt payments. Former WeWork CEO Adam Neumann is expected to sue.

Boston Fed Chief Rosengren Expects Jobless Rate To ‘Rise Dramatically’

Boston Federal Reserve President Eric Rosengren said Wednesday (April 1) that despite the best efforts of politicians and central bankers to contain COVID-19’s economic impacts, the U.S. jobless rate seems poised to shoot way up, especially among low-wage workers.

Mnuchin Will Lobby For More SMB Money When First $350B Is Gone

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said if the $350 billion in loan funds for small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) runs dry, he will go back to Congress and ask for more money. Some lawmakers have already called for a fourth stimulus bill following the passage last week of a historic $2 trillion coronavirus relief package.

New Data: SMBs Shift COVID Cash Flow Challenges To Their Workforce

SMBs tell PYMNTS that they expect their local economies to take 178 days on average to recover from the COVID-19 downturn, but that they only have enough cash to last another 20 days. So, they are doing the only thing they can right now: furloughing workers. Here’s new data on how 200 SMBs are trying their best to make ends meet while keeping what’s left of their businesses running.

What Banks Still Don’t Know About Getting The $350B To SMBs

The good news for SMBs hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis is that starting Friday (April 3), help is on the way in the form of $350 billion in federally backed relief loans. The challenge, Planters First Bancorp CEO Dan Speight and Ingo Money CEO Drew Edwards told Karen Webster for this week’s On The Agenda Digital Roundtable, is that many unknowns are left to be sorted in the 24 hours between now and when the floodgates open.

Unemployment Data Shows Darkening Coronavirus Clouds For SMBs

As the coronavirus pandemic keeps decimating businesses, particularly smaller ones, records tied to unemployment are set to topple. On Thursday (April 2), the U.S. Department of Labor reported that the number of individuals in the U.S. filing for unemployment soared to 6.6 million for the week that ended March 28.