Again, this is not binary. Huge developers can discuss exceptions. It seems Epic got a few concessions here and there with a lot of help from Apple, as FB got an exception as well.
There's also a danger in extending the idea that Apple treats all developers equally to paint too wide of a brush. Apple's point is that it's rules are applied equally to all developers, and this naturally doesn't apply to things like marketing campaigns, App Store promotions, paid placement on the store, and things like that. It applies to the App Store Guidelines and the idea that Apple doesn't make special exceptions for any one developer — at least in principle.
Now, to be fair, yes, Apple has made some exceptions, but they've wrapped those up in new programs that any developer within that category can qualify for. There's no doubt in my mind that the Amazon deal began as a desire to woo Amazon Prime into the fold, but Apple didn't negotiate a special deal that was exclusive to Amazon, but rather it created a new "Video Partner Program" that any premium streaming service was eligible to participate in. Now, does this apply to ALL developers? No, because it's targeted as "premium streaming services" so it applies to any developer of an app for a "premium streaming service" which is entirely fair, IMHO, since the deal is an exchange for something that only a premium streaming service can provide to Apple — the value of an app for their service that embraces the iOS and tvOS ecosystem.
Apple's biggest mistake with its Video Partner Program was in keeping it a secret, since it made it seem like the company was signing backroom deals, but in reality it sounds like it reached out to premium streaming services directly — and equally — to offer the program to all of them. When Apple finally did publicize the program — you can
read about it here, it also disclosed that over 130 developers are currently participating in the program, so it's far from a special exclusive deal with Amazon.
This latest thing with Facebook is the same... Apple isn't making a special exception for Facebook, but rather rethinking it's rather draconian approach to paid video events in general — essentially partially reversing a decision it never should have made in the first place. The fact that it's only providing a three month reprieve is the real tragedy here, since IMHO Apple shouldn't have drawn the line between physical in-person classes (which can use direct payments, bypassing Apple 30% commission) and video-based classes (which are considered "digital goods" and therefore require the use of Apple's IAP and the 30% cut), especially at a time when many small businesses had no choice but to offer their content in such a manner.
As noted in the article, it was actually ClassPath and AirBnb who were first impacted by this... Facebook only came along later and made a bunch of noise because.... well, it's Facebook and garners more attention than the others do. However, Apple's policy change applies equally to all three of them, and likely any other developer who is now offering online video events, classes, training sessions, or the like. Apple already changed its rules earlier this month to waive the IAP requirement for one-to-one online training sessions, but group sessions weren't similarly exempted. It's a fine line, to be fair, but Apple is still on the wrong side of it, IMHO.
