I see it this way:
- Epic want iOS devices to become as general as Mac/PC to push their store on phones/tablets
Nope. Epic does not give a damn about that. They want Apple to be forced to include their app store and do not care if people are forced to only buy from their store or Apple’s store.
- Epic breaks AppStore rule to show they are against it
Again, no. They broke the rules to create publicity. They could have followed the rules and still filed the lawsuit, or they could have pulled the app from the store and announced they would not be updating it until the rules changed and still filed the same lawsuit.
- Apple bans Fortnite but then they also terminate Epic's developer account so Epic can't update Unreal Engine on Mac/iOS
Still wrong. They informed Epic that if they did not cure the breach within a set number of days, they would terminate their developer account. meaning that Epic are not just putting their own revenue at risk, but those of others they encouraged to use their engine.
Epic have two choices:
- Play safe, stop the fight, conform to AppStore rules and continue developing for iOS/Mac
- Epic doesn't like AppStore conditions, they stop working with Apple, Fortnite and Unreal Engine games are gone from Mac/iOS
Once again, wrong.
Epic can follow the rules, and disable the functionality that is in breach while continuing their lawsuit. They could also disable the app and withdraw from the App Store while they continue the suit but still support their engine customers. There are a million other possibilities for them.
I think Epic is wrong to break AppStore rules but I see nothing wrong with them not updating Unreal to work on Apple devices. After all if a company like Apple doesn't care about you why should you care about them?
We agree on both points. If this were a matter of principle, they could withdraw from the store and announce that they would no longer develop Unreal Engine for Apple’s platform. They might get sued by some of their developers (depending on their contracts with them), but it would be certainly show that they were fighting for a principle, by giving up all their revenue on the platform.
This will lead to many people hating Epic for not supporting Apple and many people hating Apple for not supporting Epic. More developers will choose Unity, more people will get Android devices (especially kids / Fortnite players) and nothing will change about the Mac because no one gets a Mac for gaming.
This will lead a small number of people who currently care about iOS based Unreal Engine-based games to be upset. It may convince a large number of developers that they should not trust Epic, given how little care they have shown them in this fight (might be good for Unity, CryEngine and Lumberyard). Apple Silicon Macs should make casual games (at a minimum) an option for macOS.
Yeah, but someone needs to take the first step and it has to be someone big like Epic or Spotify. I don't see why Apple would otherwise lose on a part of an income stream like AppStore without a retaliation like this or maybe even antitrust lawsuits.
Again you are wrong. There is already an anti-trust case against Apple over its App Store. It is over a year old. This case by Epic is just a publicity stunt.
There are two platforms for phones. One is open, the other is closed. Why would I choose the closed one? Simply because in my opinion Apple hardware and software is better than Android alternatives, the ecosystem is also not replaceable with anything else.
Has it occurred to you that the reason it better is that they control it better and that if that goes away, it will end up just like Android?
However, there are other platforms, they are just smaller, as the two primary options hit the needs for most users. Those who want a stable, protected ecosystem in a walled garden pick iOS/iPadOS/tvOS. Those who really just wanted a free phone, a form factor that Apple does not support, the ability to use a stylus, customize their home screen or just say how much cooler they are because they are not sheep (because they own the dominant platform) buy Android.
Imagine if Apple started locking down macOS to only use the Mac AppStore. People would be furious and demand them to revert it at once.
Yup, but most of them would not really be Mac users, just people who like to complain. Given a choice, I always buy apps from the Mac App Store. I prefer knowing they will work on all my Macs, and that I will not have to remember where I got them to re-download them. Others have different opinions.
At some point people would start using Windows alternatives.
Not sure if you know this, but over 90% of desktop/laptop users already use Windows. However, about 90% of tablet users pick iOS. Given how cheap Android tablets are, I would guess that they do not care about apps only coming from the App Store and if Apple Silicon makes the Mac more compelling, will buy most of their apps via the Mac App Store as well (especially given the option of universal app purchases and subscription Family Sharing).
iOS devices to me should not be treated differently and I think with time more and more will take my side. In the end, the only reason Apple can do this is because people like me keep buying their products.
Nope. It has little to do with ”people like” you, and everything to do with the hundreds of millions who are completely happy with things as they are. There is no evidence that the number of users who supports your position has grown at all. Not only is it not true on iOS/iPadOS/tvOS/WatchOS, it is clear that it is not even true on Android where it is possible to pick other app stores and no one trusts them or cares enough to bother (hence why Epic had to cave and sell through the Google Play store). While you live in the Mac Rumors Echo Chamber, more users have not even heard of this lawsuit and almost none care about it.
I sincerely hope that those of you who want these open world like Windows and Linux will leave and go to Android and I will not have to worry about you ruining the system that many millions of users like me prefer as it is.
Better competition would solve this problem but as I already said, Android sucks.
Sorry this is not about competition. This is about a system model that is inherently different. The tightly coupled ecosystem, the concern for users’ privacy, the overall lack of malware,
etc. are all by design. Google has a different set of interests so you will always be forced to choose, unless you and those like your succeed in destroying iOS so there two platforms with the same lack of privacy and high quality software, with apps that do not integrate well with the hardware because they need to go though the same APIs as other use, with limited new features built in to the system so that no third party offering an expensive add-on solution that hits .001% of users gets ”Sherlock-ed”,
etc.