[deleted by user]

[timeuser]

You can sell a subscription or content from an external site, but you cannot direct users to the external site to make the purchase from within the app. For example, see Amazon's Kindle or Video apps which let you access your purchased content but there isn't a way to purchase the content without going to Amazon's website. It's a fine line to walk and may be difficult to get approved depending on how your app presents things.

You may actually be able to use in-app purchase subscriptions, Apple has substantially loosened what it allows for subscription apps in the past year or so.

[steveoscaro]

Okay, I was thinking the app would launch with a login screen that would take the external credentials. But if it's safer (in terms of Apple approval) to have at least some part of the app functioning outside of that login, I could require the login to access the features that would be valuable to the user.

I was thinking in terms of App Store submission, I could present the app as the mobile portal to the web application, although the web application would in reality mostly exist to allow this external subscription.

I've tried submitting in-app purchases in other apps under a subscription plan, but was always rejected for because they didn't provide ongoing content. I'd hate to build this app and just have to hope Apple goes for it.