Apple CEO Tim Cook: 'We Want to Get Every App We Can on the Store, Not Keep Them Off'

[MacRumors]

As Apple CEO Tim Cook prepares to speak in front of the U.S. House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee tomorrow, his opening statement has been made available. [PDF]

Cook will say that Apple does "not have a dominant market share" in any market where it does business, and that consumers have many other choices when it comes to smartphones. "As much as we believe the iPhone provides the best user experience, we know it is far from the only choice available to consumers," reads Cook's testimony.

The smartphone market is fiercely competitive and companies like Samsung, LG, Huawei, and Google have built very successful smartphone businesses offering different approaches.

Apple does not have a dominant market share in any market where we do business. That is not just true for iPhone; it is true for any product category.

Cook will "make no concession on the facts" and plans to dispute claims that Apple is anti-competitive. Apple's App Store, Cook says has opened the "gate wider" for developers and the fees that are charged provide access to Apple APIs and other benefits.

I am here today because scrutiny is reasonable and appropriate. We approach this process with respect and humility. But we make no concession on the facts.

After beginning with 500 apps, today the App Store hosts more than 1.7 million--only 60 of which are Apple software. Clearly if Apple is a gatekeeper, what we have done is open the gate wider. We want to get every app we can on the Store, not keep them off.

As for high App Store commissions, Cook will argue that Apple's 15 to 30 percent cut is competitive with alternatives, and that Apple offers a better option than what was available for software developers prior to when the App Store launched in 2008.

App Store developers set prices for their apps and never pay for "shelf space." Apple continuously improves, and provides every developer with cutting-edge tools like compilers, programming languages, operating systems, frameworks, and more than 150,000 essential software building blocks called APIs. These are not only powerful, but so simple to use that students in elementary schools can and do make apps.

The App Store guidelines ensure a high-quality, reliable, and secure user experience. They are transparent and applied equally to developers of all sizes and in all categories. They are not set in stone. Rather, they have changed as the world has changed, and we work with developers to apply them fairly.

Cook plans to explain that Apple has not raised commissions or added fees since the App Store debuted, and has, in fact, reduced fees for subscriptions and added exemptions for certain app categories.

For the vast majority of apps on the App Store, developers keep 100% of the money they make. The only apps that are subject to a commission are those where the developer acquires a customer on an Apple device and where the features or services would be experienced and consumed on an Apple device.

Apple's commissions are comparable to or lower than commissions charged by the majority of our competitors. And they are vastly lower than the 50 to 70 percent software developers paid to distribute their work before we launched the App Store.

The antitrust hearing will kick off tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time, with a live stream to be provided. It will also feature testimony from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and Google/Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. Cook's full statement can be read here.

Article Link: Apple CEO Tim Cook: 'We Want to Get Every App We Can on the Store, Not Keep Them Off'

 

[edgonzalez32]

I cannot roll my eyes any harder.

 

[Marlon DLTH :)]

Cook will say that Apple does "not have a dominant market share" in any market where it does not do business, and that consumers have many other choices when it comes to smartphones.

Cook is right about that.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Apple is in the cross-hairs of several different groups. And there are people behind the scenes pushing for this to come to fruition, where various groups will be able to dictate what Apple can do moving forward.

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Protecting himself ? ehhhh

 

[derekamoss]

Of course we want every app on the store... So we can get thirty percent of the profit...

 

[Naraxus]

Not anticompetitive eh Cook?

Where can I get apps for my iPhone?

I'll wait.

 

[I7guy]

Cook is not wrong in what he says. And imo, it amounts to the best experience for consumers overall. So good luck to all who sit/stand before the committee. Almost appears to be a witch hunt.
[automerge]1595985161[/automerge]

Not anticompetitive eh Cook?

Where can I get apps for my iPhone?

I'll wait.

I'll bite....the ios app store. You may have an icon on your ios home screen....if you use an iphone. Because you may want to go to another "store", doesn't mean it's ever going to happen.

 

[rp2011]

Some want to shop at Trader Joe’s. Some like Walmart. Some like Amazo....yikes, ok ok when you put Amazon in the mix then yeah there needs to be regulations to protect the marketplace.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Not anticompetitive eh Cook?

Where can I get apps for my iPhone?

I'll wait.

Are you expecting apple on an orange tree?

 

[FrankieTDouglas]

Is that why Infowars' app was deleted?

 

[Pixelsage]

*gets popcorn and waits for tons of people to complain about the 30% cut Apple takes*

 

[MUrhino]

The current system is better than anything that existed before. You don't like it? No one is forcing you to consume or develop iOS apps...move on to Android or Windows, or a different career field. You can't force Apple to run their company a certain way, or reduce their fees, or stop advertising for their own apps. It's their store. They thought of it, developed it, invested the $$ and made it happen; therefore they get to set the pricing, just like any store owner. If people don't like it they will vote with their wallets and Apple will adjust (or fail). Why is this concept so hard for people to understand. It's called Capitalism.

 

[BGPL]

I would bet between Jeff Bezos, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, one of them spit out their coffee when they read "we want to get every app we can onto the store..."

They want to get apps into the store because that's revenue. But if you're in direct competition and pose a significant threat to an Apple product, they're not going to make it easy. So what he's saying is partially true, which is probably how he's able to sleep at night.

 

[rgeneral]

Is that why Infowars' app was deleted?

I get what you mean. if someone wanted to buy porn at Costco, should they allow it. It is a store. I would assume Apple has the right to determine the contents. If you do not like the contents, you can always go to another platform. But I do understand both sides.

 

[planteater]

I strongly disagree with this statement of his: "...and that consumers have many other choices when it comes to smartphones."

There are only two choices; iOS and Android. The brands, of which there are many, are not relevant at the level he is insinuating. It's the operating system that defines choice. The hardware is just an implementation detail. Yes, important, but not what leads to "many choices".

 

[topdrawer]

Of course we want every app on the store... So we can get thirty percent of the profit...

it's a lot more than 30 percent if you consider most apps won't make any money but they still get 100 bucks/year from the developer

 

[Pixelsage]

The current system is better than anything that existed before. You don't like it? No one is forcing you to consume or develop iOS apps...move on to Android or Windows, or a different career field. You can't force Apple to run their company a certain way, or reduce their fees, or stop advertising for their own apps. It's their store. They thought of it, developed it, invested the $$ and made it happen; therefore they get to set the pricing, just like any store owner. If people don't like it they will vote with their wallets and Apple will adjust (or fail). Why is this concept so hard for people to understand. It's called Capitalism.

And on top of that, it's not like the 30% cut is something new. They announced it pretty much from the get go. It's not like some developers made some great apps, and Apple decided "gee whiz we could make a load of monies if we started taking 30% of what these guys are making!" They calculated the benefits of their services, they delivered, and they're successful.

 

[trusso]

Sidestepping much?

Cook and co. are tone-deaf. And if they expect us to be fooled by the recitation of mantras, they've got another thing coming.

 

[-DMN-]

Are you expecting apple on an orange tree?

What if MacOS had the same restrictions in regards installing apps?

 

[Apple_Robert]

What if MacOS had the same restrictions in regards installing apps?

To be consistent, I think Apple should hold MacOS to the same standard.

 

[Naraxus]

Are you expecting apple on an orange tree?

Not at all but please answer my question: Where can I get apps for my iPad, iPhone & iPod Touch?

 

[incoherent_1]

Cook is right about that.

Exactly. During my day-to-day life, I see far more Android phones than iPhones.

If anything, I wish we had another phone platform to combat Google.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Not at all but please answer my question: Where can I get apps for my iPad, iPhone & iPod Touch?

You just contradicted your position with this reply. No need to wait for Tim to reply with what appears to be a double-standard.

 

[cpfoto2005]

I look forward to an analogy-free discussion here.