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New U.S. Antitrust Bill Would Require Apple and Google to Allow Third-Party App Stores and Sideloading

jonblatho said:
Then don’t sideload apps or install apps from any source other than Apple, if it makes you feel better. If a developer refuses to make their app available through Apple’s store, either deal with it or refuse to do business with them. Problem solved.
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The question is, how does the side loading work. If you have to install another "App Store" from Apple's App Store, then I would assume this would be ok. But if you can install a new "App Store" from a website, or link, then someone else installing malware from a separate app store could cause it to send emails or texts to contacts and those unknowing contacts could be infected with the malware, even if they never went anywhere but the official App Store.
 
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sw1tcher said:
You know, no one is required or will be forced to use 3rd party app stores or 3rd party payments. That's the beauty of having options and choice.
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People keep making this argument, but it just doesn't hold up. Right now, if you want to sell an iOS app to me you must use the AppStore, therefore all apps I want are available through the AppStore. When that requirement goes away, that benefit will go away, and apps that I actually want to use will only be available through portals I don't care to use and I'm forced with a choice between the application I want and the convenience/security/peace of mind I want-- a choice I don't have to make today.
 
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i-felt-a-great-disturbance-in-the-force-as-if-millions-of-sheep-suddenly-cried-out-in-terror.jpg
 
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I can't say I'm thrilled about this. Your phone is about to become a cesspool of trashware as developers leave the App store and Apple's safety review. I chose the walled garden because I wanted to not have to worry about this stuff.

To all those saying "just don't sideload", HA. You know that's going to be the primary method of getting apps as soon as the AAA developers build their stores. Now to get an app I'll have to install that developer's store, manage my login/pass/CC info there, install the app, deal with all their store's updates and sales pitches, and that's just for one app. This will happen for all the AAA apps. The Epic lawsuit shows the way. Soon it'll be King/Zynga/Adobe/Microsoft/Facebook/TenCent/et al soaking up bandwith, eating your battery, introducing all manner of security breaches, etc.

Big developers win. Hackers win. Small developers don't. Customers don't. Enjoy your 12% savings at cost of your security, bandwidth, storage space, and battery.
 
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sw1tcher said:
You can sideload on a game console (i.e. bypassing Sony's, Microsoft's, Nintendo's, etc. game store) by buying games on a disc/card through Amazon, Best Buy, etc.



You mean you want to be able to install and use non-OEM/after market parts and fuel on your Mazda. Oh, wait. You already can.
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That’s not how gaming consoles work the console maker not only gets a cut from every physical sale but developers can’t release software without being vetted and reviewed by the console makers as well
 
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Mebsat said:
For smaller devs 15% is a very good value considering marketing, card processing, etc. The scrape on subscription revenue has been pure greed on Apple's part and now here we are.

Apple could have headed this off by offering an App Store tier with a 10% subscription rate instead of acceding to the portrayal of the App Store as nothing more than a toll booth. Had the pre App Store status quo persisted, the mobile app world would be nowhere as developed as it is now.

That said, Apple provides a lot of value in the use of its APIs and I just can't get excited about sideloading. This will be a huge malware issue. It's strange that Apple can't seem to mention how much value devs get from access to APIs in their battle with Epic.

I think if you want to sell an app completely outside the App Store, you should write it from scratch and caveat emptor.
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"I think if you want to sell an app completely outside the App Store, you should write it from scratch and caveat emptor."

Yes! And assume all responsibility and damages for anything that goes wrong (privacy breaches/malware/phone damage/etc.) from others using the side-load or other app store app.

Similarly, Apple should be absolved from bearing any responsibility from side-loaded or alternate app-store software causing any of the above types of damage.
 
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Analog Kid said:
No, and that's a problem I don't want to also have on iOS.
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What problem are you having on macOS?

I have been using macOS since 2002, installing and using apps from all over and never had any malware or virus or other “scam” issues whatsoever.

The paranoia and hysteria over this is unbelievable

Some of the coolest and most unique software I’ve ever used are things that were never in any curated App Store with review processes.
 
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Khedron said:
You can still be the gatekeeper on your own phone.

Some people on here seem to have fallen for Apple's lies and have no idea how real life works.

But if other people are allowed to invite visitors into their homes they will surely have access to my house too somehow!!!!!!!
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You do not quite get it.

Look at the App store on macOS. Hardly anything there.

So you must be a gatekeeper on multiple stores, download sites, etc.

This will be iPhone…
 
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Amazing Iceman said:
That's not considered sideloading...

sideload | ˈsīdˌlōd |​

verb [with object] Computing

install (software, especially an app) obtained from a third-party source rather than an official retailer: when you sideload an app from the Web, you're installing an unapproved app from an unknown developer.

• copy or transfer (data) from one device to another directly, typically by means of a link such as a USB cable or wireless connection: you'll need to connect your tablet up to your PC and sideload the file.
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tubedogg said:
Sideloading necessarily involves software obtained outside of channels the manufacturer controls. Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo all control the disc or cart-based channels that convey software for their respective consoles.

Try again.
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Last I checked, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo do not control eBay, Facebook Marketplace, etc.

IMO, being able to obtain new and pre-owned games from those channels (as well as 3rd party retailers) is equivalent to sideloading.

If I buy a pre-owned game, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo do not get a single cent from the sale, just like how sideloading an iOS app means Apple doesn't get a single cent.
 
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Smearbrick said:
This is the same silly argument that the recording and film industries have been making for years. They assume that people who illegally pirated their content would’ve purchased it under different circumstances, and this has been found to be wrong.

Supporting links to come.

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy...llegal-downloads-dont-equal-17000-lost-sales/

https://www.wired.co.uk/article/music-piracy-doesnt-hurt-sales

https://freakonomics.com/2012/01/12/how-much-do-music-and-movie-piracy-really-hurt-the-u-s-economy/

If you don’t want to side load, don’t. If you want to stay safely within the confines of the App Store, do so. That’s your choice.
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Then explain why the play store only makes a fraction the iOS store does with so much larger instal base.
 
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ikramerica said:
You do not quite get it.

Look at the App store on macOS. Hardly anything there.

So you must be a gatekeeper on multiple stores, download sites, etc.

This will be iPhone…
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There are thousands of garbage malware apps on the App Store, e.g. FaceBook. I just don't install them.

No one will force you to install a 3rd party App Store app any more than I'm already being forced to install FaceBook by it existing in the official App Store.
 
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Zwhaler said:
Controversial, but I don't see how formally ending Apple's monopoly over in-app purchase revenue would harm consumers. They still have a choice to use Apple's system.
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I’ll explain you why this will harm users who want to keep using, purchasing, downloading apps from the App Store (a safe place where apps are reviewed by a team searching for malware).

If the apps can be openly sideloaded, as easily as on the mac, many iOS developers will do what many macOS devs do: not chosing the App Store. What if many apps I use dispersar from the App Store? I will be forced to sideload them, trusting the dev hasn’t built a backdoor, trojan, or anything malicious. And you can trust Spotify team because they are a big company and they are struggling to compete with Apple Music so they cannot afford any scandal. But what about indie devs? I don’t personally know them.

If apps are allowed to be sideloaded, that will be great for open source software, because the code can be reviewed by anyone. I totally support open source apps on iOS, but many devs choose closed source code because anyone can copy the app and they cannot monetize them. And developers, just like any other human, like to eat everyday, and pay the bills and taxes.
 
Analog Kid said:
People keep making this argument, but it just doesn't hold up. Right now, if you want to sell an iOS app to me you must use the AppStore, therefore all apps I want are available through the AppStore. When that requirement goes away, that benefit will go away, and apps that I actually want to use will only be available through portals I don't care to use and I'm forced with a choice between the application I want and the convenience/security/peace of mind I want-- a choice I don't have to make today.
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And people keep making this silly argument.

Do you honestly believe that if developers could sell their apps outside of Apple's app store that they'd completely abandon the Apple app store and miss out on the opportunity to reach the 1.65 billion plus iOS users?

🤣
 
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4743913 said:
your laziness should not affect me. if your favorite developer/app does not want to use the AppStore, complain.
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It doesn't. I'm not asking for anything to change. Your unwillingness to move to the existing platform that satisfies your needs should not affect me.

You can side load on Android. You can buy though multiple app stores on Android. Why limit my choice by making all ecosystems race to the bottom?
 
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WiseAJ said:
A great disturbance in the force, As if millions of whiny developers that want everything for free, scammers, and terrorists suddenly cheered in victory.

Hope these politicians remember this when a third party app leads to the next 9/11.
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If I had to guess, I would say you are the youngster..
 
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