Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
69,480
40,591


Cydia parent company SaurikIT, LLC has filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit after U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers dismissed the company's antitrust lawsuit against Apple last month, according to court documents. SaurikIT had voluntarily asked for the case to be dismissed so the appeal process could begin at the higher court.

cydia-vs-apple-feature.jpg

SaurikIT sued Apple in late 2020, alleging that the company has an illegal monopoly over iOS app distribution given that the App Store is the only authorized marketplace where users can download apps on the iPhone and iPad. The complaint also alleged that Apple has "consistently tried to snuff out alternative app stores," including Cydia.

Cydia launched in early 2008, months before Apple's own App Store. The app allows users who "jailbreak" their iPhone or iPad to install apps outside of the App Store, as well as themes and tweaks that customize the look and functionality of iOS. For example, long before Apple introduced the Control Center on the iPhone, there was a tweak available on Cydia called SBSettings that offered similar functionality.

The lawsuit alleged that Cydia was the "the App Store before the App Store" and the "first comprehensive solution" for expanding the iPhone's capabilities, although it's worth noting that another unofficial App Store known as Installer launched prior to Cydia.

SaurikIT is owned by Jay Freeman, who is one of several developers and companies who have sued Apple for alleged anticompetitive behavior in relation to the App Store over the past few years, with others including Fortnite creator Epic Games, streaming music service Spotify, FlickType keyboard app creator Kosta Eleftheriou, and more.

Apple has repeatedly denied that the App Store is a monopoly given that it faces competition from the Google Play store on Android devices. Apple has also repeatedly touted the privacy and security benefits of the App Store, arguing that third-party app stores on the iPhone could expose users to fraud, malware, and other risks.

Article Link: Cydia Files Appeal in Higher Court in Legal Battle Against Apple
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Wildkraut
McDonald’s has an illegal monopoly over the McRib! I should be able to get a McRib anywhere at any time of the year and not just when the overlords at McDonald’s decides to bless us with one.
And why can't I get my Whopper at McDonald's?! There's no Burger King near me, but I want a Whopper. McDonald's is stifling competition by not letting Burger King offer the Whopper at McDonald's.
 
Ok but why wait 12 years to fight a legal battle when you've literally always had to jailbreak to have it?

Also, if Epic Games can't do anything then I'm not sure what they expect they're wasting their money on.
 
Excuses? Really?

Lol, yes, really.

Now show me the amount of money lost by customers for buying into scammy subscription apps which Apple leaves on the App Store for months without action. I wonder how much fraud Apple could prevent if they removed web browsers from iOS.

Sure, they have some valid statistics which support their claim, but it doesn’t amount to a sound argument at the end of the day when they need to lie and make excuses to “protect” their users.
 
Ok but why wait 12 years to fight a legal battle when you've literally always had to jailbreak to have it?

Also, if Epic Games can't do anything then I'm not sure what they expect they're wasting their money on.
But seriously, I’m really not sure what they’re hoping to accomplish with this. Besides, even if side-loading were a thing, the vast majority of stuff on Cydia would still require jailbreaking (all those system hacks, graphics packs, etc. don’t have documented APIs, they have to inject code into the system and thus need to bypass the sandbox and the system’s other security measures such as memory protection, which requires jailbreaking). And I’d doubt they’d get much of a following among devs putting paid apps in Cydia, Cydia is basically apt based (Debian’s package manager), so adding cracked app repos is as easy as adding a new apt repo, meaning that many Cydia users would just install the cracked apps for free.
 
Excuses? Really?

Does Apple stop a lot of bad apps from getting onto the App Store? Yes. I don't think anyone is really denying that.

But Apple also lets in a lot of fake, scam, and copy-cat apps.







 
Now show me the amount of money lost by customers for buying into scammy subscription apps which Apple leaves on the App Store for months without action. I wonder how much fraud Apple could prevent if they removed web browsers from iOS.

And whose fault is that? You can request a refund for purchases if they turn out to be a scam, or if they just don't work to your satisfaction.

I've done that numerous times and not once has Apple denied me a refund.
 
And whose fault is that? You can request a refund for purchases if they turn out to be a scam, or if they just don't work to your satisfaction.

I've done that numerous times and not once has Apple denied me a refund.
That's great that Apple refunded you for the bad apps themselves. But will Apple offer compensation for the damage that using a bad app they let onto their App Store caused you or this guy? I'm going to say no.



Apple should when they say they "review all apps, app updates, app bundles, in-app purchases, and in-app events submitted to the App Store to help provide a safe and trusted experience for users"
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dan Holmstock
Excuses? Really?

Repeating the same old FUD. Sideloading doesn't mean scam apps/malware. As with all thing, it's possible. Can you install a firewall through the AppStore? What about older, better versions of some apps? What about useful apps, like iDOS 2, that are banned from the AppStore?

People stupid enough to sideload a scam app is stupid enough to download a scam app from the AppStore.
 
I don't want sideloading because it will eventually be required by most developers. You can't say "just don't sideload" because soon enough apps even from top developers will be unavailable in the App Store. Once sideloading becomes an option on iOS, it will become a necessity. You'll end up having the Microsoft Store, the Adobe Store, Facebook Store, Epic (remember them?) Store, Zynga, King, Google, etc., all with their own licensing agreements, billing, return policies, storage use, bandwidth use, etc.

When something goes wrong, developers of sideloaded apps will point fingers at each other, Apple, and the user, and they will never accept responsibility. The user will be left with no recourse.

I trust Apple far more than random developer #329487 when it comes to security and privacy.
 
That's great that Apple refunded you for the bad apps themselves. But will Apple offer compensation for the damage that using a bad app they let onto their App Store caused you or this guy? I'm going to say no.



Apple should when they say they "review all apps, app updates, app bundles, in-app purchases, and in-app events submitted to the App Store to help provide a safe and trusted experience for users"

No, because that is a crypto scam. With crypto there are no refunds, if you give out your seed phrase (which is essentially what happened here, he thought it was legit) you're screwed.

The moral of the story is, crypto is useless, not fit for the average user, and will never replace the security of a bank, which would refund the money in case of a phishing attack.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.