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And that's why every app has to use the In App Payment system you know and trust.
Uber, Deliveroo, Amazon, and even the Apple Store app - all the apps you know so well have to use in app purchase.

Except of course that none of these apps use Apple's payment system.
Every app has to use Apple's payment system for items bought on the device ending up on the device. Apps are not allowed to use Apple's payment system for item bought on the device and ending up elsewhere. That has been the same for the last 14 years; it seems you just discovered it.

Epic would have been allowed (actually required) to use their own payment system if they sold you little figurines that you can put up on the desk. Or posters showing your achievements that you can hang on the wall. Or flight tickets to the next Fortnite player conference. But not for things that stay on your iPhone.
 
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Did macOS with its open app system become a flea market then, by Tim’s standards?
Tim distorted his own reality, thats something not even Steve managed to achieve, a new master class.
He badly needs to pick up his Apple Watch, open the Window and Breath ....... Breath ....... , that self quarantine isn't doing good to him, what a moron, unbelievable.
 
If the AppStore was a “safe and trusted place" to discover apps we wouldn’t be having this discussion. Search is still a nightmare and scam apps and fake reviews are everywhere.

You know, if they have actually done it like they said, I would have given them benefits of doubt. But right now it is clearly not good enough. Patrick McGee from Financial Times had a whole twitter thread on it.


I think since Steve Jobs passed away no one was being the yard stick for quality in user experience. So for the easy stuff that are measurable like Hardware performance, those continue to innovate. Other thing like Keyboard, Mac Direction, UI, Services like App Store, no one bothered to touch it.
 
If the AppStore was a “safe and trusted place" to discover apps we wouldn’t be having this discussion. Search is still a nightmare and scam apps and fake reviews are everywhere.
You are wrong and you need to drink more Cupertino CoolAid. ;)
 
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There’s plenty of room for middle ground. Keep the app store as the sole distribution channel. Mandate that In-App Purchases be used for any purchase that unlocks features (to prevent developers from skirting the initial payment), but allow content like in-game currency to be purchased via third party. Require that all third-party payment options use the same terms and conditions regarding refunds and disputes, and require that all third party payment methods accept Apple Pay so consumers don’t have to constantly key in their card info. Developers get to keep more money from their bread and butter in-game currency sales by direct-charing consumers, users get a fairly consistent experience across the board, and Apple still gets to be the primary gatekeeper for iOS apps.
 
Why would any European court fight for the TenCent, the Chinese 750 billion dollar company that is behind Epic?

I didn’t say that Epic would be the reason a third party store would have to happen, more that Europe would probably lead the charge.
 
developers can already use the internet to process payments.

Try to buy netflix on ios. you can't. same thing with other big names.

And apple doesn't charge the little guy any more on the first million of sales.
Sure they do. 15%.

Cupertino California — Apple today announced an industry-leading new developer program to accelerate innovation and help small businesses and independent developers propel their businesses forward with the next generation of groundbreaking apps on the App Store. The new App Store Small Business Program will benefit the vast majority of developers who sell digital goods and services on the store, providing them with a reduced commission on paid apps and in-app purchases. Developers can qualify for the program and a reduced, 15 percent commission if they earned up to $1 million in proceeds during the previous calendar year.
 
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I don't get it what's wrong with being a flea market? Are you trying to be racist?
What's racist about a flea market? They exist almost everywhere in the world, regardless of culture, under different names and forms. I like going to them, but the issue is that anyone can sell anything with little standards for quality/price or selling process, which a an apt metaphor in this case.
 
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So because some people don't like flea markets, let's forbid them. Because people can't chose for themselves.
The equivalent to flea markets for apps is what is on android with so many app stores and payment methods. I don't think a lot of iPhone users would want that.
 
Android seems to have something like 80% or more of the smart phone market, but despite this Apple seems to have most of the revenue market share (something like 80% of all app money goes to iOS). There is a reason for that.

Apple has created a system that easily parts user from their money, and everyone benefits. If every other app had its own payment system that create too much friction for most users and the total amount spent on apps would go down. I know I would be in that camp too. It's easy to spend money because the friction is low and I trust apple.

I'm ashamed to admit that I tend to buy subscriptions directly from the App store even if I know the developer offers the ability to purchase outside of the app store (I do this for hulu+ for example). The reason? Because I know apple makes it easy to cancel, Apple sends me an invoice with my current subscriptions so I know what I'm paying for, etc. In other words, Apple make the subscription experience much better then signing up for each service individually. I would happily pay the extra 30% if I suddenly had to, because the things apple adds is worth it.

If there is some fair resolution that could come out of this, IMHO, it would be that maybe companies should be allowed to charge a different price for Apple's in app purchases / subscriptions. That would deflate most of the arguments, allowing end users to decide if they are willing to pay more for Apple's services, would allow developers to circumvent apple while passing on the savings to end users.

Let's be clear here, the reason Epic is fighting this battle is less about fortnite, in my opinion, and more likely because they want to be able to open up their Epic store on other platforms. They really want to compete with Apple (and Google) on the platforms they created.
 
Flea market? That's being elitist. I like flea markets for hard to find bargains.

He could easily have used the term Farmer's Market. It's more akin to a farmer's market anyways because the producer is selling directly to the customer, cutting out the middle man. At a flea market, you get diverse products, but most of the time it ain't the produced by the seller.
 
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If Visa or Mastercard were charging merchants 30% they'd be out of business. Apple abuses its position to set this rate.

Given the profits Apple sees from App Store revenues, it's clear that 30% more than covers the overhead (which is their argument) for store maintenance. It should be closer to the 3-5% that payment processors IRL charge. I'd even go as high as 10% considering Apple must also pay Visa/MC/etc. fees as well.
Visa and MasterCard Do not store promote and sell your product, let alone give you access to hundreds of millions of potential customers. All these wealthy companies crying about paying rent from a platform that is making them millions money they wouldn’t have if the App Store didn’t exist. I believe the small business program was the best possible move from apple that benefits the people that really need it.
 
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