iPadOS Identified as Digital 'Gatekeeper' Under New EU Tech Rules

[BiscottiGelato]

Agreed. I think from left,right,conservative,liberal, what party would be in favor of anti-right-to-repair and pro-planned obsolescence? There is much that the different parties do not see eye-to-eye on, but this is not it. Why would you be against it? Maybe there is a strong "regulation = communism" sentiment in the US, but not so much in the EU. Who knows, this might all become also a positive for Apple, since iMessage is almost as dead as FB messenger here (Whatsapp rules the messenging space). Cross compatibility with Android might actually create an uptick in its usage).

If anything one should be fearful of authoritarian governments’ increase usage on the gates that is of the App Stores to shutdown on individual freedoms. How many freedom tools & apps have been removed from App Store at the behest of governments? China & Hong Kong absolutely. I am sure others can name hundreds more examples around the world.

EU’s rare turn to remove chokepoints to user autonomy should be celebrated, before their increasingly authoritarian tendencies co-opt these gates to further infringe on individual liberties

 

[Darth Tulhu]

Trust me. The calls to have the gates opened was no where nearly as loud until Apple have increasingly become little tyrants, going well beyond ‘safety’ into the realm of restricting freedom and open competition, and using their existing success to prevent others from being creative in adjacent markets

I fail to see how that's possible when NO ONE is forced to use an Apple product.

 

[lanomds1]

Great news. I think Apple’s monopoly should definitely slow down. They can keep the same service quality and still give users options inside the system. People should use Apple products because they like it and not because they are stuck in the ecosystem.

 

[emulajavi]

Finally!

iPadOS is just iOS with a different name for marketing purposes!

next is to void the Core Technology Fee…

 

[TechnoTiger3000]

A lot of DMA haters seem to forget that Apple became profitable after Microsoft faced regulation.

 

[lanomds1]

I fail to see how that's possible when NO ONE is forced to use an Apple product.

No one is ‘forced’ in theory, but we all know how hard it is to abandon iOS once you’re locked in the ecosystem.

 

[BiscottiGelato]

I fail to see how that's possible when NO ONE is forced to use an Apple product.

It’s called bait & switch and user lockin. Telecom providers, etc do these all the time with much less friction imposed for switching compared to switching from the Apple eco-system

 

[Beautyspin]

thats part of what i pay apple for, for a closed system where the apple app store is the one easy, generally mostly safe, place to get everything. if i wanted an open coral of different stores, and worrying about the authenticity of apps on sites i would have bought an android phone.

yes, on the one hand, its better that we now can get emulators. on the other, those in the EU have to put up with what is in practice an inferior situation, so that non EU users can get the better experience.

You can have your closed system if you close it by not installing alternative app stores, never sideload, and generally keep doing what you are doing. Why do you want others to not have a choice of their own? Even on Android, just because alternate stores and sideloading is allowed, not everyone is using it.

 

[Enrico]

Finally an alternative browser engine will be available also on the iPad, Apple’s computer replacement!

 

[klasma]

Apple created the iPad in a certain way, by making decisions that might be right or wrong; it seems like people really liked those decisions, but now in the EU they think they know better than us customers what we really want.

No, many people didn’t like those decisions, they use Apple devices despite Apple’s authoritarianism, because it's not the only factor to consider when choosing a platform. You can’t just assume that because someone chooses an Apple device, they like everything that Apple does. And the market situation is such that consumers have to decide between two evils.

 

[Beautyspin]

Are you suggesting that if company A sells a HW product, it is not allowed to charge for any add-on SW or service to that product?

And if not, please explain why Apple must legally be limited to only charging money for the hardware.

It can sell any addon SW products. It should compete with others is all the DMA says. Not just make it mandatory to buy only Apple stuff just because it made the HW product.

 

[GrayFlannel]

Anyone with an IQ of 85+ would realize that all retail works exactly like Apple.

Want to sell your own products at a shopping mall or the local super market and keep 100% of the money?

Go try it and report back how it goes.

This is yet another analogy failure.

 

[ibookemo]

This is positive as it encourages Apple to lower the walls of the walled garden a little. It seems to be already having an effect on iOS - I was surprised that iPadOS had originally gotten off the hook.

 

[ibookemo]

This is actually a good thing for the ipad

Yeah I have to agree. I'm glad the EU has strong rules - there needs to be some limits on large companies.

 

[DFZD]

for almost 40 years, Nintendo has dictated about a billion users that they can only install/use apps/games that Nintendo approves. yet Nintendo is free to do this. sounds like EU arbitrary drew the line just so that Apple would be included.

Nintendo makes Game Consoles. Gaming is a formally regulated industry like Movies. It has universal checks and balances that Apply to all stakeholders equally. Whereas Apple is able to control iOS like no other company is able to control their operating system in the Mobile space.
Do you need me to break it down to even simpler terms? So you can stop giving poor examples.

 

[Beautyspin]

I wonder if Apple can/would implement a software mode where it's one or the other: free OR secure.

And once you choose, you can't go back without a complete reset.

And free mode means the user would agree to absolve Apple of ANY consequences that ensue.

So basically, allow Android on the iPad which locks you out of ALL Apple apps that aren't cross platform.

As if Apple takes responsibility now for any issues with either its first-party and/or third-party apps now. If you think it does so now, please point it out or give us a link of the article which says so.

 

[cfountain72]

Great news. I think Apple’s monopoly should definitely slow down. They can keep the same service quality and still give users options inside the system. People should use Apple products because they like it and not because they are stuck in the ecosystem.

Monopoly? I don't think that word means what you think it means.

 

[Kal Madda]

On the same day, the Commission opened a market investigation to assess whether Apple's iPadOS, despite not meeting the quantitative thresholds laid down in the DMA

The rule HAS changed or the rules are selective. Which one is it?

Exactly. And even in their own quote, the EU is like “even though this platform didn’t meet the thresholds we put in place for this kind of regulation, we’re regulating it anyways to promote “fairness”…” More silly edicts from the EU. They don’t even follow their own “rules”. They’re drunk on government power they should never have, and it’s bad for everyone. As I’ve said many times before, this kind of legislation is way outside the proper jurisdiction of government authority. It would be like mandating that McDonald’s serve pizza on their menu.

 

[Beautyspin]

And that’s a defining factor of a product that has very high levels of customer satisfaction. They could have also decided that no one can develop and install apps at all, only stock ones. There is nothing criminal with taking decisions that make a product incredibly popular.

And then who would have bought an Apple device? Android tablets are not selling because they do not have a good third-party ecosystem, not because they do not have good hardware. iPhones and iPads would not have sold if not for the vibrant ecosystem of third-party apps.

 

[jimtonic01]

that consumers have to decide between two evils.

one takes away your freedom and your money and the other is doing business with your personal data

 

[SanderEvers]

Finally!

iPadOS is just iOS with a different name for marketing purposes!

next is to void the Core Technology Fee…

Nah, next is Core Technology Fee for iPad.

 

[DFZD]

may as well design your own device, eu

Imagine you buy a car from Honda, lets say Civic. After 2 years Honda stops providing spare parts for the car. You and other buyers go to the courts and courts ask the government to pull up Honda to provide spares.
I then as a Honda NSX buyer mock the government to design their own car.
How much sense do you think my argument makes in that case?

 

[Beautyspin]

How about you look up who voted for and against the DMA? It's not that difficult.

The European Parliament voted in favor of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) in July 2022 with 588 votes in favor, 11 votes against, and 31 abstentions. The Council of the European Union also endorsed the text in July 2022, signifying the agreement of member states.

Proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on contestable and fair markets in the digital sector (Digital Markets Act) | Legislative Train Schedule

As part of the EU digital policy, digital gatekeepers must now comply with the Digital Market Act rules.

www.europarl.europa.eu

Not too many choices.

 

[b17777]

You can always use the App Store. Why does that have to preclude me from using Apps outside of the App Store? How communistic is it that everyone MUST do what you deem as ‘safe’?

Is it "communistic" for the government dictate how a business designs its hardware and software to work together ? Force them to open it to other companies ?

 

[iPay]

now is the perfect time to ditch iPadOS in favor of macOS. iPad will work so much smoother if both used the same macOS.

Yes, but again, this would cut into Macbook sales and they love their iPad+Macbook owners. So they need to differentiate and unfortunately, they throttle with iPadOS. Time to let loose indeed