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Companies fighting another company don’t want that company to have information to fight them in court. Yawn. Pretty normal Apple wants it and pretty normal they don’t want to give it. Lawyers win win win.
 
It's irrelevant anyway, other companies have already started to Turn the Heat Up on Apple.

July 27th is an important date for Apple, which is the Drop Dead Date for some.

@davidcicilline is the (one) place to get real news on the subject !

I expect Short Interest in AAPL to go (way) up between now & month's end !
 
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create your own store with links to download the apps
Yes, this is exactly what Apple is blocking and what they want to do.

Epic operates their own app store for every other OS. Every other general OS has multiple stores, and every other OS can download apps from the internet or installed via physical media, including Apple's macOS.

Apple has made the totally arbitrary decision that iOS cannot have multiple stores, or have apps that are downloaded from the internet or via physical media.

Well, except it's not arbitrary. It's a carefully made decision to maximize Apple's profits and minimize what developers and consumers receive.

Any argument that Apple makes that it is somehow to the benefit of the customer has an incredibly straight forward rebuttal - then why doesn't Apple do the exact same thing on macOS? Why isn't this model copied for any other platform? What makes iOS so special that it, and it alone, benefits from having just a single way of installing apps?
 
If anyone has a monopoly its Microsoft
Well...maybe it's the people buying their crap.
People buy all sorts of *mechanical/electrical stuff, they will go back if it malfunctions, yet if it's windows they do nothing...nothing at all.



* For instance, a car, if it has troubles within an hour of purchasing, all of us will go back to the garage.
 
The issue is other companies view iOS as just a platform like MacOS where they want to be able to sell their content (games, music, movies) using their own billing methods without giving 30% commission to Apple.
Right now Apple doesn't allow 3rd party app stores on iOS, so for them building their own store is not an option

Oh no, we formed this bogus group to get what we wanted with little justification and tarted legal proceedings, what? the other party wants to know what is going on< this was supposed to be about them and not our made up stuff.

Seriously, for every "complaint" they came up with, they have a workaround. don't like commission, sell vbucks outside the App Store. Can't advertise on someone else's store, create your own store with links to download the apps. Pathetic really
 
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Epic operates their own app store for every other OS. Every other general OS has multiple stores, and every other OS can download apps from the internet or installed via physical media, including Apple's macOS.
Epic's other app stores are at the very best run with questionable intentions. I would not cite their stores on other platforms as a defense of Epic because it invites investigation on how those stores are run, how well received they have been by consumers, and how much value they have provided.

If anything this is a defense for why a closed iOS ecosystem needs to persist. There are no other closed app stores. If you want a closed ecosystem iOS is your only option.
Apple has made the totally arbitrary decision that iOS cannot have multiple stores, or have apps that are downloaded from the internet or via physical media.
It's not arbitrary. It's a response to the condition of Apple software when third-party stores were the only option. Apple realized they needed to control the flow of apps on their platforms if they wanted customers to even have an experience.
Well, except it's not arbitrary. It's a carefully made decision to maximize Apple's profits and minimize what developers and consumers receive.
Right. It's not arbitatry. It also has drastically increased developer profits and consumer choices. I promise you that app developers are making far more in 2021 on their apps than they did on their full software suites back in 1990.
Any argument that Apple makes that it is somehow to the benefit of the customer has an incredibly straight forward rebuttal - then why doesn't Apple do the exact same thing on macOS? Why isn't this model copied for any other platform? What makes iOS so special that it, and it alone, benefits from having just a single way of installing apps?
There is a macOS store and Apple runs it exactly the same way they run the iOS store. They even added a lock that discourages people from installing apps from outside the App Store. But, in order to allow for legacy apps to run they have to allow non-app store macOS apps access. It sucks, true, but it's a condition of the longevity of the ecosystem.

I guess what makes iOS special was that it was released after Apple learned it's a lesson about the importance of third-party software distribution. They have to control it if they want any apps to be respected. Thank goodness too, because we all - developers and customers - won as a result.
 
I couldn't give a crap what Apple do on their store, I just think they shouldn't have the monopoly.... I mean Microsoft used to get into massive trouble all the time for anti competitive behaviour that was lesser than what Apple do.
Apple doesn’t have a monopoly and Microsoft had 95% of the market and didn’t actually make any hardware
 
Good. If it’s a fight they want, it’s a fight they will get.

Show neither mercy nor quarter, Apple!

This. "Coalition" for "Fairness" has nothing to do with fairness and everything to do with a select group of companies trying to get an edge on Apple. This includes lawfare. Apple can and should return service.

If the "Coalition" doesn't like that then they can stop the lawfare. So ends Apple's ability to return service. See how that works?
 
The issue is other companies view iOS as just a platform like MacOS where they want to be able to sell their content (games, music, movies) using their own billing methods without giving 30% commission to Apple.
Right now Apple doesn't allow 3rd party app stores on iOS, so for them building their own store is not an option
I see the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a platform for selling superhero movies. Therefore, I have the right to make my own movies that take place in the MCU without paying them for setting up the universe. It shouldn't be up to Disney to decide how I distribute the content I make since the MCU is just a platform and not IP owned by someone else.

That's how Epic and their cronies see macOS.
 
Apple's probably wondering who's financing this whole thing, and trying to show that they're not the choir boys that they make themselves out to be.

It's all about the money anyway.

"Transparency? That's for other people." - CoAF
 
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I wish these developers would realize their customers have voted on what they want the App Store to be.
iPhones are a fraction of the devices out there yet the App grosses over twice as much as the Google Play store.
Even Android customers don’t want to buy apps from the “open” cesspool know as Android market places.
Stop being greedy and putting your customers at risk. We have spoken, iOS users want a closed secure store.
There are a lot of iOS users who don't agree that you speak for them.
 
Apple has made the totally arbitrary decision that iOS cannot have multiple stores, or have apps that are downloaded from the internet or via physical media.

Well, except it's not arbitrary. It's a carefully made decision to maximize Apple's profits and minimize what developers and consumers receive.

Any argument that Apple makes that it is somehow to the benefit of the customer has an incredibly straight forward rebuttal - then why doesn't Apple do the exact same thing on macOS? Why isn't this model copied for any other platform? What makes iOS so special that it, and it alone, benefits from having just a single way of installing apps?

Apple knows how to make money, no doubt about that. However, as a consumer I am quite happy with Apple’s way of doing this.

I need to be able to have full control over my computer. Sometimes I even develop software myself, and I need to have a full Posix compliant command line environment with docker and friends. If macOS didn’t offer that, I’d use Windows (which finally includes Linux) or Linux (with not-so-refined user experience).

On the other hand, I do not need to do anything fancy with my phone. I do value the added security offered by having a relatively reliable gatekeeper with the App Store. If I wanted to have a more open environment, I’d use Android.

Of course, this is just my view, but to my eye Apple’s choices are logical and fit my needs.

(Not that I’d love everything Apple does. I am a bit worried about where iPad is heading. It is becoming a very capable computer crippled by its very closed infrastructure.)
 
I'm far from a lawyer so I admit I don't know how discovery works completely, but this seems awfully broad and unfiltered. Shouldn't discovery requests have to be specific to the case at hand, not just "we want to know everything?" Again IANAL but it feels like a discovery request should be treated similarly to a search warrant - very specific requests with justification for each. If you believe that I have done something that warrants suing me, do you then have the right to demand any personal data on me that you want, even if that data is very loosely or not even at all connected to the argument in question? If I ran a repair shop and was unable to repair your device and you wanted to sue me, would you automatically have the right to demand discovery on data about other customers? Private company meetings? My sales records? If you were to come into possession of that data, what would legally stop you from misusing it? Selling it to the highest bidder? Corporate espionage? Etc.

I don't necessarily think the entire request should be quashed, but it definitely should be toned down a lot. The problem, as the article states, is the potential chilling effect this can have - we already see just how powerful political pressure is on silencing unpopular opinions. Expressing your concerns and even suing someone should not automatically negate all of your rights to general privacy.

(Cue the Apple fanatics who will simply say "Good. Apple is right." lol)

Not sure what basis Apple has for subpoenas if there aren't any legal proceedings directly involving the parties. Apple would have every right to subpoena CAF if there were direct and relevant connections to a pending legal proceeding, but the scope of information would be very limited. Apple cannot conduct a fishing expedition. Also, CAF could simply not comply - like WTF could Apple do about it? Shredding a BS based cease and desist letter is kinda fun 🤣
 
Some developers are unhappy with Apple's terms and rules to be in their App Store.

Well... who says a developer *has* to be in Apple's App Store?

Do corporations have rights?

I understand that Apple's platforms can be very lucrative for developers. And yes... obeying Apple's rules are the only way to get in their store.

But again... is there a law that says you *must* be allowed in a particular store?
 
Maybe, but they all agree with what he said since they all voted with their wallet for it.
It isn't so cut and dried as that. Nobody was never asked "what they want the Apple store to be" which is what was claimed. Do you think people would continue to exclusively buy everything from the Apple app store if there was a secure, safe alternative that charged less money? Some would, I'm sure. But a lot would not. I balance out everything each time I buy a new phone and "voted" by buying an iPhone but that doesn't mean I agree with everything Apple does.
 
Apple's probably wondering who's financing this whole thing, and trying to show that they're not the choir boys that they make themselves out to be.

It's all about the money anyway.

"Transparency? That's for other people." - CoAF
Or to put it another way, people often use the word "unfair" when they really mean "it's not to my advantage".

I don't think the companies involved in this coalition are interested in fight for a more equitable business environment for app developers, much less empower them. It's about getting more power on the Apple platform, especially now that companies like Spotify believe that they are huge enough household brans that they no longer need the equalising power of the App Store, and they will burn the current App Store model to the ground to get it if they have to. Which would be a massive disservice to smaller developers, which form the bulk of people developing for the App Store.

We have seen it with Epic, we are seeing it with Spotify (who is making a huge ruckus over Apple's 30% cut despite most of their subscribers not netting Apple any money as they disabled IAPs a long time ago), we are seeing it with Tile (who is upset that Apple made a far superior product that threatens to obsolete their way inferior offering).

Neither side is necessarily more "right" than the other, but I have seen what lies on the other side, and I have zero interest in this "brave new world" that said coalition seeks to usher in for us iOS users.
 
It isn't so cut and dried as that. Nobody was never asked "what they want the Apple store to be" which is what was claimed. Do you think people would continue to exclusively buy everything from the Apple app store if there was a secure, safe alternative that charged less money? Some would, I'm sure. But a lot would not. I balance out everything each time I buy a new phone and "voted" by buying an iPhone but that doesn't mean I agree with everything Apple does.
Are you suggesting they only chose iOS because they didn't have the option to get a phone with a secure, safe alternative to the built-in app store?
 
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