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Epic: Fortnite Offline Worldwide 'Until Apple Unblocks It'
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Yes, that's because a$$le should allow Epic on the platform....
You can't understand if you stay in a$$le shoes.
It's pretty simple: when I have installed Fortnite on my PC I didn't have to ask permission to anybody.
Epic is asking the same for the phone, but greed a$$le is trying everything to block them.
Apple’s been acting like a child in the past couple of years and it’s ridiculous.
Perfectly understandable action by Apple. Sweeney is just an irritant at this stage.
It’s absurd that Apple has any say in which apps are permitted on third-party app stores, they shouldn’t be involved in that decision at all.
Also, blocking them again on their own App Store just feels petty at this point. Apple is acting like a whining child who didn’t get their way. Ridiculous.
Also, blocking them again on their own App Store just feels petty at this point. Apple is acting like a whining child who didn’t get their way. Ridiculous.
Not just that. People might own the hardware, assuming they're not renting it from a telco. But they don't own the OS and never will. That belongs to Apple, and the user merely has a licence that permits them to use it. So the argument about "owning the phone" is a fallacy.
I shouldn't have to move to be able to do what I want with what I own.
Consumer freedom should be the default everywhere. No exceptions.
I hope the judge comes down hard on this BS.
Sure, you didn't ask permission to download Epic's game from Epic's PC store. They own both the store and the game, so they don't have to pay fees to anyone else and can just provide the game directly to you.
That's not the case on mobile, though. They don't own the App Store or the Play Store. Apple and Google do, respectively.
Non-Epic games that are sold via the Epic Games Store need to pay fees to Epic. So, Epic wants to charge fees to game developers who sell games on their store, but don't want to pay Apple any fees when selling games on Apple's store?
How does this make any sense?
So, Epic complains (somewhat justifiably) about App Store fees and policies, takes Apple to court, and forces them to open up iOS to third-party marketplaces.
Then Epic launches its own marketplace — one where they don’t have to pay Apple a cent.
And now… they’re trying to get Fortnite back on the App Store, complaining that Apple won’t approve it?
Oh, suddenly those App Store fees weren’t just “greedy commissions” after all? Turns out they also covered marketing, developer tools, seamless updates, secure payments, and all the user experience polish Apple users gotten used to & running a full-fledged, secure, user-friendly marketplace is a lot more work than Epic probably anticipated.
Then Epic launches its own marketplace — one where they don’t have to pay Apple a cent.
And now… they’re trying to get Fortnite back on the App Store, complaining that Apple won’t approve it?
Oh, suddenly those App Store fees weren’t just “greedy commissions” after all? Turns out they also covered marketing, developer tools, seamless updates, secure payments, and all the user experience polish Apple users gotten used to & running a full-fledged, secure, user-friendly marketplace is a lot more work than Epic probably anticipated.
Apple doesn't have to allow Fortnite in. The company could exclude any given app for any given reason. A store doesn't have to sell any given product in the world. The store's owners could decide to not sell something just because they don't want to. While reasons might be petty, it is the right of the owners. Similarly, I don't have to allow any given person into my home. I can block people from entering my house for any reason I want to, even if I generally invite most other people in. This is especially true if I had previously invited someone and told them "Here are ground rules" and then that person completely disregards those rules and starts trying to burn my house down.
What this means is that Epic has no inherent right to have any given app in the App Store. Even for something as important as an App Store, I don't think we want Apple to have to allow any given app. I don't want to make a slippery slope fallacy, but if a government could force Apple to have to accept any given app, that's a potentially dangerous situation.
Now, should there be the option to 'sideload' apps and use alternative app stores? That's a different matter.
What this means is that Epic has no inherent right to have any given app in the App Store. Even for something as important as an App Store, I don't think we want Apple to have to allow any given app. I don't want to make a slippery slope fallacy, but if a government could force Apple to have to accept any given app, that's a potentially dangerous situation.
Now, should there be the option to 'sideload' apps and use alternative app stores? That's a different matter.
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The judge specifically said Apple was within its rights to block Epic, so I don’t think she will be coming down on this.
I tried to use the Epic store in windows to play an exclusive game once. I deleted Epic the next day and will never touch it again. The Epic store is a $&@* sandwich of poor coding, interface “design” and excessive DRM. I waited a year for epic exclusivity to expire and then started to play the game on Steam.
As I wrote in another comment, I'm not sure if you/we really want Apple to be forced to accept Fortnite in the App Store. It is Apple's store and Apple can allow or not allow any app the people at Apple want. Having a judge involved in something like this would be a bad situation.
Think of it like this. Let's say you run a retail business. Do you want a judge to force you to sell a product you don't want to? There are many other similar products that you sell already but a judge should force you to sell a particular product because of the "BS" of not allowing someone who blatantly broke a contract with you and sued you to have their product in your store?
Whether there should be separate app stores available or sideloading are different issues. I'm in favor of those, but fully support Apple's blocking of Fortnite in the App Store even if those other options do not exist.
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In the years this has been going on, Fortnite has become less and less popular, and gamers have moved on.
It doesn't, you're not up to speed on this, this is related to the US store only.
They won't, the court order advised that Apple doesn't have to allow someone into it's App Store
They don't need to, this is not new, just made out to be new by those forgetful. Apple hasn't denied Epic, Epic's US account was suspended. No idea how they are attempting to upload the App, but Apple banned them.
And the EU can't get involved, as above, this is a US issue, Apple have complied with allowing a third party App Store in the EU, so Epic can go to town. Oh wait! That's the issue, Epic isn't making million in the EU, it's the US they want!
Apple still has a chokehold on the process through the noterization step. Theoretically Apple isn’t allowed to use it as a de facto app review in Europe, but they have on many occasions. Not sure what specifically Apple is doing here, but they absolutely can block it at this point (assuming they want to risk the EU stomping on them some more).
Do kids even still play Fortnite these days? It's very personal for this guy like people cared about Fornite back then but just like all trends, this train left long ago...
When I learned that Apple intentionally lied under oath in court it was pretty sad. I suppose you don't get to be where they are by being morally sound, like all the other tech companies.
I picked up my 12 year old from a birthday party a week ago and lot of the kids where playing Fortnite on a console, so yes.
All she plays is Minecraft.
Lol, developers also have the choice to go build their own hardware and set their own terms. It's hilarious to me that people somehow view this as a bad deal by apple....It's akin to asking for a rent-free store in a luxury shopping mall. Apple built the mall, it has every right to decide the terms. There are other platforms available should a developer be unhappy with them.