Dallas’ Match Group criticizes Apple, joins ‘Epic’ battle in Silicon Valley - Dallas Business Journal 8/18/20
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Epic Games Aiming to Recruit 'Coalition of Apple Critics' to Fight App Store Policies
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You made my point right there and probably didn't even notice! Starbucks can sell their product (as in market and distribute) many places (Barnes and Noble, grocery store counters, their own stores, literally anywhere) and can make deals with those places as to how much it costs them to do so. If they don't like the terms at a mall, they look elsewhere.
App developers don't have such choices. One store, one choice. Period.
Most payment systems that accept credit cards charge 2-3% fee for processing the payment. Not 30%. Seems a bit much for processing an in-app payment, don't you think?
Because that’s all that apple is providing, right? Payment processing?
That’s why i am removing my apps from the App Store and putting them in the PayPal App Store. *smh*
What stops an app developer from building an Android app though? Surely if they don't like the terms of the Apple App Store, so they build an Android app instead and pay Google 30% instead. Isn't it the same example? They could also put their Android app on their web site to get people to side load instead. Though even if you're someone like Epic with all of it's resources you still might find that you want to have it in one of the App Stores so it can be found.
For people with Macs we rarely use the store. You install software that see is well known, web site that has testimonies, reviews, the vendor is trustworthy. Online magazines have reviewed the software. The Apple App Store for iPhones and iPads is very closed comparably. We talk about all the security and safety with it, but why is that almost a big nothing, when the OS should be designed to protect users from threats?
In that regard MacOS is clearly hardened/locked down. Is iOS, iPadOS so bad that we need people lecturing us that the Apple App Store is there because security and safety concerns as a gatekeeper?
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It's not just about safety and security.
They take responsibility for what is published on the App Store.
User experience, which is probably the biggest difference between iPhone & Android, is huge and extremely important to Apple.
Aside from the OS itself and the dozen or so Apple apps people use regularly, 3rd party apps are what make or break the user experience.
They (Apple) do things a certain way and they expect (as does the user) 3rd party apps to do things that are innate to iOS according to the human interface guidelines.
Dedicated gaming platforms exist, and they're successful.
But you don't have those platforms on you at all times, on the device you happily use all day long.
No, of course not! And, if Apple wants to charge 30%, or 50%, or 90% for all of the services they provide developers on the App Store, fine, that's their prerogative!
But, generally, when someone offers to sell you a service, you have the ability to say "no thank you, I'll do that work myself," or to find a different vendor who charges less, or does more. On the iPhone, Apple has explicitly made sure that no one except them can offer apps.
And, sure, it's Apple's platform, but then Standard Oil was John D. Rockefeller's company. Large businesses are not allowed—shouldn't be allowed—to abuse their positions to lock out competition. How can Apple's actions on iOS be described as anything else?
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Very simple. Developers can sell their apps on android or any other mobile platform.
Yes, and upstart oil companies in the late 1800s could build their own production and supply chains to go around Standard Oil. That's not a reasonable form of competition.
Thats also clearly comparing the Apple App store to a previous monopoly example.
Android has most of the worldwide market. Saying ”write apps for the majority platform” is not at all equivalent to “drill for your own oil.”
Android has a minority of the market in the US (where Epic has filed their lawsuit), and even worldwide, Android users make up a tiny portion of the customers wealthy enough to actually pay for games and software. If you want to sell mobile games, a large majority of your customers are on iOS, and Apple has granted themselves exclusive access to that base.
I don't think that's so different, again, from the classic case of Standard Oil. Standard Oil didn't own every mode of transportation, but if you wanted to distribute oil, they controlled everything that mattered, and could charge whatever they wanted as a result.
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This data shows 60/40, minority yes but not an insignificant portion of the userbase. (2019 and phones, tablets show ios as a much higher percentage)
Android v iOS market share 2019
We looked at 2019 data to see how the Android v iOS battlefield has developed over the last few years. Android had a great start to 2019, and now enjoys around 90% OS share in Egypt, India and Indonesia. Read on for more stats from across the globe.
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I wonder if the existence of Android really is protection for Apple here. It is, after all, the only other big player in the space. Microsoft was hit with various anti-trust rulings, despite there being Macs, Linux, etc. Imaging if Microsoft had only allowed Windows users to purchase software through a MS store, and MS took a cut of ever piece of software written for Windows.
Further, Android shows that Apple's model isn't the only possibility, as Android allows for alternate stores, or even direct installation by the user. An Android user can at least compare prices for many apps between Google's and Amazon's stores.
I personally don't care for either Apple's nor Epic's business models as they relate to this case, but I'm pretty interested in how it all plays out.
Further, Android shows that Apple's model isn't the only possibility, as Android allows for alternate stores, or even direct installation by the user. An Android user can at least compare prices for many apps between Google's and Amazon's stores.
I personally don't care for either Apple's nor Epic's business models as they relate to this case, but I'm pretty interested in how it all plays out.
That is what is key here.
They use to market the "Think Differently" when advertising Apple, but all I see is a lot of stuck in the box instead of thinking out of the box mentality here with the Apple vs EPIC lawsuit.
Its always good to question things, even if you're wrong, but its worse to not questioning things at all because you become accustomed to the existing marketplace.
Not really an apples to apples (no pun intended) comparison as with Microsoft they had approximately 90% of consumer/professional desktops while Apple/Mac hovered in the 5-10% range and linux was enthusiast and servers. A 90/10 split will surely get the attention of monopoly hunters while 60/40 (iOS vs Android) is far less likely to cause a problem.
I agree it is not an identical situation. I was just pointing out that anti-trust concerns don't require complete monopolies. Consumers don't have many choices of operating systems with robust app support. So a company like Epic can either deal with whatever rules Apple puts down or lose a massive chunk of the mobile market. That surely will be of interest to the courts.
Epic only just started, they obviously think they have a chance at achieving some objective though I can't imagine they actually believe they'll win legally. The entire thing is a marketing stunt and they've already won the early win there by defining the narrative. They might win legally as well and that will be interesting to see how it plays out.
So now we have CCP Epic, CCP Spotify and a sleazy dating service against Apple LOL
Apple provide a **** ton of services for that 30% cut.
Epic of course are relying on ignorance to garner support.
And Apple uses their own payment system on Google Play for Apple Music. Just like some other stores they have agreements. Nintendo and MS agreed to let their gamers play against each other. All just like the exclusivity deals on the Epic Store.