Apple promotes ‘F1 the Movie’ via Wallet app push notification

Apple’s Wallet app push notification, sent to users on June 24, 2025
Apple sent a Wallet app push notification ad to an unspecified number of U.S. iPhone users. The ad highlights a limited-time Apple Pay discount from Fandango for two tickets to Apple’s upcoming – and very heavily-promoted – film, “F1 The Movie.”
Joe Rossignol for MacRumors:
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Some of the iPhone users who received the push notification have complained about it across the MacRumors Forums, Reddit, X, and other online discussion platforms.
“As far as I can tell, Apple is now just sending me ads to my screen now as push notifications, something I hate with an absolute passion and disable across the board in every app that tries this,” said one person who received the notification.
Some people are especially upset about receiving a push notification ad through the Wallet app because it is a very important app for personal finances, so simply turning off notifications for the entire app is not a feasible solution.
Worse, Apple seems to be ignoring the guidelines that apply to App Store apps. The company says push notifications should not be used for promotions or direct marketing purposes unless users have explicitly opted in to receive them for said purposes.
The full text of Apple’s guideline:
Push Notifications should not be used for promotions or direct marketing purposes unless customers have explicitly opted in to receive them via consent language displayed in your app’s UI, and you provide a method in your app for a user to opt out from receiving such messages.

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MacDailyNews Take: Given the amount of promotion Apple is lavishing on “F1 The Movie,” it seems the company is fairly desperate to have the summer blockbuster of 2025. We will note that this is certainly not the first time we’ve received a push notification of an Apple Pay deal via the Wallet app. If any of these missives interest us, we appreciate it. If not, we simply ignore it and swipe left to clear it. Color us nonplussed by the whole affair.

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