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Money = justice. Let's go ahead and just take that as given.

A very small percentage of developers make the vast majority of money on the app store.

We've seen what happened to Epic when a developer tries to argue with Apple, and loses.

It's sad but the state we're in is that these big companies fight for their own interests and maybe, if we're lucky, users get something good too.

But they can't just go to court and say they want a better business deal so they make more money. It has to be about policy. And really, it is. But in this twisted way.
“tries to argue” = puts their own store in their app against the developer agreement, then sues and loses badly?

That’s some weird logic 🤔
 
Is this the way it is going to be — each week, another article starting with “Spotify complains”? I would suggest this be modified to “Spotify whines about”.

Did the EU stipulate how long Apple gets to review an app or app update before it is allowed into the App Store? No. The law just went into effect about a week ago.
 
They have "thrived" by working around Apple's BS as much as they could so they didn't have to give 30% of their income to a company that has 0 cost the the service Spotify provides. They have thrived in spite of Apple's requirements, not because of them (not to mention the fact that, you know, this isn't their only platform to be on). Most one person dev teams are "happy using the App Store" because that's the only way they can. That's like having a gun pointed at your head and having to be greatfull to the gunman because you're alive
Typical BS from someone that sees Apple as some sort of God. The fact is, without apps, the iPhone would be a useless piece of crap rusting in the landfills. It's because of apps that the iPhone still exists. Apple should be bending over backwards to make developers happy. Why Apple should get a dime from Spotify when they do nothing is beyond me.

App stores aren't helping developers, they're in the way of developers, they're in the way of consumers, they're worthless middlemen that should not exist in the age of internet software distribution.

The ONLY reason there's an Apple app store is to facilitate Apple's rent-seeking.

It blows my mind how many of you think Apple providing a safe, secure store that customers trust means absolutely nothing. How can you not realize that exponentially more software downloads happen because Apple does so?

Spotify got as big as it did BECAUSE of the app store, but now that they’re big enough that customers trust them with credit card information they act like Apple did nothing for them.
 
You're been reading too many Apple press releases. It's a lie that Spotify and Epic aren't willing to pay Apple for access to resources, tools, support, app distribution, payment processing, etc. And they're already doing that by being a member of the Developer Program.

If Apple believes that the money they earn from the Developer Program, ads in the App Store, and voluntary use of their payment system, is not enough to cover the cost of maintaining iOS and the App Store, then maybe Apple should change their business model instead of terrorizing and extorting developers by abusing their market power.
You mean like Apple have done? Those new Terms Of Service that Spotify have not mentioned if they have agreed to?
 
It blows my mind how many of you think Apple providing a safe, secure store that customers trust means absolutely nothing. How can you not realize that exponentially more software downloads happen because Apple does so?

Spotify got as big as it did BECAUSE of the app store, but now that they’re big enough that customers trust them with credit card information they act like Apple did nothing for them.
This is hilarious! Spotify got "big" because it's superior over Apple Music and other music streaming services. The App Store has absolutely nothing to do with it except it's a forced portal for users to get the app. You really think people use the App Store as some sort of department store and read all the reviews, etc., before choosing Spotify? Maybe 1%. Everyone else knows what they want and are forced to get the app from the App Store. I already pay Spotify directly (have for years) and have no trust issues. The fact they get 100% of my money instead of 85% or 70% means my prices don't go up so fast.
 
The Approval process is a blackmailing instrument and should be removed altogether. There is practically no guaranteed timeline for the approval. If you speak against them, they can simply block you.


It is also the nightmare for software developers. You could release a new version which has a bug. You could fix it within hours for all platforms. But the iOS version could take days to be approved (even the Expedited App Review does not guarantee anything). Your customers would start complaining about the missed SLAs.
 
It blows my mind how many of you think Apple providing a safe, secure store that customers trust means absolutely nothing. How can you not realize that exponentially more software downloads happen because Apple does so?

Spotify got as big as it did BECAUSE of the app store, but now that they’re big enough that customers trust them with credit card information they act like Apple did nothing for them.
Well said. I’m baffled at the casual disregard and lack of appreciation of the benefits that users, iOS app developers and service providers get from Apple’s investment of money and life energy in creating and maintaining the app ecosystem. 🫤
 
If these companies would talk to each other besides through lawyers the users would be so much better off. Apple is doing what Google did ten+ years ago, and deciding to make themselves a competitor to everyone.
Yes, it was certainly inconsiderate of Apple to launch the iTunes Store in 2003, knowing that Spotify would launch a few years later. Blockbuster might be able to make that complaint, but Spotify, not so much.
 
The Approval process is a blackmailing instrument and should be removed altogether. There is practically no guaranteed timeline for the approval. If you speak against them, they can simply block you.


It is also the nightmare for software developers. You could release a new version which has a bug. You could fix it within hours for all platforms. But the iOS version could take days to be approved (even the Expedited App Review does not guarantee anything). Your customers would start complaining about the missed SLAs.
I’m curious: Have you ever developed an iOS App, submitted it to the iOS App Store and had it rejected or published? I’m asking because my company does this every day and our experience is nothing like what you describe — not for developers, not for our business customers and not for the users of the apps we develop for them.
 
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If I want Spotify on my Mac (which I don't), I go to their site and download it, then install it. Done.

There's no good reason -- Apple profits don't count -- that it should be different on a device that fits in my pocket.
Perhaps, in a perfect world, but I do not recall it ever working that way for a device that fit in my pocket. I mainly remember having to get everything (what little was available) through my telecom and paying for ringtones that somehow wouldn't even move forward to my next pocket device.

The app store may not be perfect from today's viewpoint, but that is mainly because it is apparently good enough to make us forget where we started.
 
This is hilarious! Spotify got "big" because it's superior over Apple Music and other music streaming services. The App Store has absolutely nothing to do with it except it's a forced portal for users to get the app. You really think people use the App Store as some sort of department store and read all the reviews, etc., before choosing Spotify? Maybe 1%. Everyone else knows what they want and are forced to get the app from the App Store. I already pay Spotify directly (have for years) and have no trust issues. The fact they get 100% of my money instead of 85% or 70% means my prices don't go up so fast.

You clearly have forgotten what installing software was like for normal people before iPhone, or maybe you weren’t alive/old enough for it. Apple’s approach to apps and the App Store ABSOLUTELY created massive values to developers.

I’ll quote Steve Sinofski (who literally ran Windows, so not a die-hard Apple fan), who said it well better than I ever could:

This promise of safety and security was a landmark and step-function improvement in computing. One of the key benefits was you could simply march through the App Store and without fear try any app instantly. You didn’t need to worry about DLL-hell, corrupting the registry, uninstall leaving garbage behind, or an app installing some nefarious capability that might monitor everything happening on your phone.

It is difficult to overstate how beneficial this brand promise was for developers. The market this opened was enormous. People like to say things like “I know my parents can use the App Store” but that is an ageist way to say that normal people can just use a vast array of software without even thinking about potentially horking their PC. It was an appliance experience.
 
Yes, it was certainly inconsiderate of Apple to launch the iTunes Store in 2003, knowing that Spotify would launch a few years later. Blockbuster might be able to make that complaint, but Spotify, not so much.

Woosh. iTunes sold music. Spotify has never sold anything. Apple has decided they want to rent stuff out, like Spotify.

Honestly you're making my point for me. Apple decided they wanted to become a competitor to Spotify. And that they also would use their operating system control to leverage that.
 
Baloney. Spotify and Epic want access to over a billion iPhone users without paying a red cent to Apple for that access. Both are acting like the dicks that run them.
And why should they? Let the billion iPhone users decide how they buy their stuff. Most will chose the Appstore anyways. Apple is just destroying it's reputation (and risking fines) for being a control freak, nothing else.
 
It’s funny how ridiculously long Spotify’s development cycles are taking YEARS to implement new features, yet they can whip up an update to include alt payment methods or links to their site… the amount of requests on their forum and responses saying “we’re looking into it” or “future item” is stupid. I remember when the iPhone 5 came out it took them months to adopt the dynamic layouts (4-6 months I think). It took them years (3 I think) to finally release a Watch companion app. I think some guy started developing his own and they ended up hiring him.

That being said, I’ve been a Spotify subscriber since 2012 (crazy it’s been almost 12 years and I don’t want to think about what that total amount is… lol). I’ve been mostly satisfied with them over the years minus the slow feature adoption. I’ve had so many trials of Apple Music in the past and am currently on one. It still doesn’t beat Spotify mainly for one feature; Connect. It’s sooooo much better than AirPlay. I also hate Apple Music’s layout and design. I don’t know that I’ll ever switch.
 
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The AppStore has a standard process that applies to every developer. You submit your new app build or changed build with the associated metadata via AppStore Connect. AppStore Connect shows you the status of your submission from Submitted, to Waiting for Review, to In Review, to Accepted, to Waiting for Export Compliance, to Pending Developer Release, to Processing for Distribution, to Pending Apple Release, to Ready for Distribution or other standard process stages.

Apple does not acknowledge receipt for anyone nor do they reach out except when there is a rejection (which is accompanied with explanation of why the app is rejected and pointers to relevant app review guidelines). The developer is allowed to respond within the system to either explain if and why they believe the reviewer made a mistake or to ask for additional information. It is a very impersonal process as that is what’s required to operate at the scale that the AppStore operates at (~2M apps, almost 1M developers/publishers).

App review time varies from app to app and change to change depending on complexity and volume of AppStore activity. My company’s initial app approvals average than a week and app changes average 1-3 days. We always know exactly where an app is in the entire process. I am certain that Spotify also knows where its submission is despite its claim that Apple hasn’t acknowledged its submission — because that’s how the system works. I suspect that Spotify’s review process will also take longer than usual because of (a) increased volume of app changes due to EU DMA requirements, and (b) Spotify‘s history of deceptive and malicious behavior which compels Apple to ensure that the submission is compliant.

As someone who works with Apple’s AppStore every day for my business and in support of my customers businesses, I am grateful for the AppStore and Apple‘s development platform and ecosystem. Sure we have had rejections and most of the time, the rejection motivated changes that improved user experience. In the rare occasion where reviewers were wrong we received quick approval after pointing out the errors or oversight respectfully. This is the experience of all the Apple developers I personally know. The contrarians seem to be large businesses with egotistical leaders (Spotify, Epic, 37 Signals, etc.) trying to circumvent the AppStore guidelines for personal gain and stretching the truth to gen up public outrage to assist their efforts.

Net-net: As a development professional, it is indeed a privilege to have such a well-thought-out and supportive (though imperfect) platform to build a business on and to help other businesses improve their operations with reliable, high-quality software solutions. It is tragic to watch Apple getting smeared in this process by bad actors.

Just two things. First, you're confusing Epic with Spotify. Spotify has never exhibited malicious or deceptive behavior. That language is even a stretch for Epic. Deceptive yes. Malicious, debatable.

Anyway, second thing, you are literally the first independent developer I have ever seen praise Apple like this. Superlatives and all.

This post reads like Apple is paying you to write it. I'll take it at face value and give it the benefit of the doubt.
 
It’s funny how the only people I know backing Spotify and Epic those who make their living, directly or indirectly, from developer related businesses or content sold through an app.
 
Just two things. First, you're confusing Epic with Spotify. Spotify has never exhibited malicious or deceptive behavior. That language is even a stretch for Epic. Deceptive yes. Malicious, debatable.

Anyway, second thing, you are literally the first independent developer I have ever seen praise Apple like this. Superlatives and all.

This post reads like Apple is paying you to write it. I'll take it at face value and give it the benefit of the doubt.
Yes, Apple is indirectly paying me to write this: For only $99 a year they provide and maintain world-class development tools, support and app distribution platform that allows me and nearly two hundred employees to enjoy a great standard of living while delivering solutions that help our clients do the same. I will hurl superlatives at anyone or anything that consistently delivers exceptional service and value to me and for me. Apple’s development platform is one such example and I’m not going to be silent about it when I see people unfairly bashing them.

I don’t claim to speak for all developers but I can assure you that the developers on my team have fewer gripes on iOS development than they do about other mobile development platforms including Xamarin/.NET Maui, Android, and Flutter .. and that is partly because of the extent and quality of support resources provided by Apple for iOS. And when I talk with my peers, some of whom are competitors I hear the same thing. But, your experience appears to be different and that’s ok.

Finally, I guess our definitions of deceptive and malicious are also different. In my value system making a public statement that sounds reasonable to lay people because they don’t know enough about a subject to call BS on you is deceptive. Spotify‘s claim that Apple has not "acknowledged nor responded" to its App Store submission is deceptive because Apple acknowledges and responds to every AppStore submission the same way: by updating submission status in AppStore Connect. Spotify knows the status because it is available to them in AppStore Connect, yet they make a public statement that is untrue to whip up public fervor to coerce regulator action. That is dishonest. And the potential consequences of that dishonesty is reputation or legal harm to Apple. That is malice. But this is my perspective. You are free to have your own.
 
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