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Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

bbc.com

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Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#211

Post by jtbayly »

enos_feedler wrote: post #192
dice1-6 wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apple could be forced to allow alternative stores and browsers. They get money for iPhone there is really no reason for restrict the store. So phone and app store could be naturally cut like for android ecosystem.

I still don't understand what enabling multiple browsers, from an engine standpoint, would achieve. Is it competition? Don't all browsers just implement the same set of standards? What is the lack of competition holding back?

True PWA's, for example, including push notifications.

Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#212

Post by OCASM »

enos_feedler wrote: post #192
dice1-6 wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apple could be forced to allow alternative stores and browsers. They get money for iPhone there is really no reason for restrict the store. So phone and app store could be naturally cut like for android ecosystem.

I still don't understand what enabling multiple browsers, from an engine standpoint, would achieve. Is it competition? Don't all browsers just implement the same set of standards? What is the lack of competition holding back?

Apple ties Webkit versions to iOS versions. Once they stop supporting your iOS device every browser on it becomes obsolete.

Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#213

Post by enos_feedler »

SllX wrote: post #166
Barrin92 wrote: post #113

Just more evidence that large platform and device owners will try to gate-keep and landgrab as much as they can and try to destroy the open web and force competitors into financial agreements to collect economic rent. There finally needs to be regulation on this. No banning of end user services as long as they're legal, I don't want a phone maker controlling what I do on the internet. It's ridiculous. Microsoft in th…

I look at it like this, without a horse in this race: some enterprising mofos are trying to create additional value for Apple's platforms, pay Apple's fees if they have to (or at least Microsoft was willing to, from what I hear they didn't expect to be shot down entirely), and Apple is saying no. No. I mean what they're offering, at least in theory, is pretty neat, pretty compelling. Play Xbox Series whatever games,…

I am not so sure Android's policy won't evolve to better match what Apple does. At the end of the day both of these platforms serve to defend their core ecosystems. It is clear that the app /container concept is the one thing Apple holds dearly. Streaming services represent a leak/wedge into another app/container ecosystem. That alternative ecosystem has its own business models, review process, developer relationship, etc). It will never fly in it's current form, for any of these streamers (geforce now, stadia, xbox, etc).

I don't think we are stuck though. Both major mobiles would love to have a way to make this work from both a product and business standpoint. The platform just needs to evolve to support them properly and we aren't there yet.

For Apple, I could see a path where upon pairing your existing Xbox console with Apple, it unlocks an Xbox branded app store across your devices. Apple would be fed meta-data for that entire store so they would have some levers of control over the experience. The key thing here would be no onboarding flow to the xbox store. You are a clear xbox platform user and you want to extend that experience onto your Apple devices through a pairing flow originating on your purchased xbox. Same could work for any hardware console.

Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#214

Post by sneak »

paulnechifor wrote: post #207
sneak wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think that's correct, there is nothing forcing you to use iMessage. Lock-in is not compulsion, you can simply stop using the product.

"Stop using the product" works for coffee, where if you don't like it you can try an alternative. But with the cash cows of mega corps you often have few alternatives and it's intentionally difficult to switch. I don't understand why some are wary of government regulations, but have no qualms about being controlled by major corporations where you don't even have a vote.

I used to use iMessage every day. It was my primary mode of communication for 10-ish years. I bought iPhones as gifts for others who didn't have them, just so we could iMessage.

Today, I never use iMessage. I'm not logged in to it on any devices. A big part of this was Apple backdooring the end-to-end cryptography (with full plaintext message history and key escrow via iCloud Backup, which is not e2e encrypted, and on by default for all users) which makes it way less secure.

Turns out that iMessage is optional. All of the other forms of communication that existed before and after it are still available to you as options. There's no law or any requirement anywhere that you use it.

"Lock-in" is colloquial: you're free to leave at any time. I was, and I did. Anyone can.

Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#215

Post by reassembled »

echelon wrote: post #203
threeseed wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sony, Microsoft etc sell their hardware at a loss and recoup through software licensing. Which is not possible if you going to force them to do things like have alternative app stores or to allow any content to be used.

Game consoles aren't computers. They're much cheaper and last longer than phones. You can also buy and sell your games.

This is increasingly becoming less true as more people purchase the "digital only" version of most of their games. I haven't purchased a boxed copy of a game in many years, both on my consoles (PS3/PS4 + Switch) and my PC (Steam/Origin/Blizzard stores, etc). The only feasible way to resell a game tied to one of these digital accounts would be to sell the entire account.

Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#217

Post by icebraining »

manigandham wrote: post #176
sneak wrote: post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why do you think regulation (forcing Apple to compromise their editorial decisions) the answer? Nobody is forced into buying an iPhone. Customers willingly opt-in to these platforms.

Do you support any regulations for corporations? If so, what's the difference? Why should trillion-dollar megacorps that run our lives with little competition or escape be allowed such freedom?

I think there's a difference between regulations controlling externalities, or protecting the dispossessed, and protecting people from phones that don't have certain games. Do you not?

Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#218

Post by shmerl »

Apocryphon wrote: post #216
__m wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not really. Stadia wasn’t exactly a big success either

GeForce Now is quite good.

I think it started OK, just as a VM renting service where you could run games you already bought in any store. But it went sideways when they started restricting what kind of games you can run.

At least Google Stadia makes developers port games to Linux. Geforce Now isn't doing anything like that.

Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#219

Post by martimarkov »

echelon wrote: post #203
threeseed wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sony, Microsoft etc sell their hardware at a loss and recoup through software licensing. Which is not possible if you going to force them to do things like have alternative app stores or to allow any content to be used.

Game consoles aren't computers. They're much cheaper and last longer than phones. You can also buy and sell your games.

This statement is a valid as: phones aren’t computers.

You can’t have such an arbitrary definition.

Re: Apple blocks game streaming services unless individual games are approved

#220

Post by cable2600 »

echelon wrote: post #151
Barrin92 wrote: post #113

Just more evidence that large platform and device owners will try to gate-keep and landgrab as much as they can and try to destroy the open web and force competitors into financial agreements to collect economic rent. There finally needs to be regulation on this. No banning of end user services as long as they're legal, I don't want a phone maker controlling what I do on the internet. It's ridiculous. Microsoft in th…

It's time for the DOJ to break up Apple. Together with Google, they're destroying the Internet and open computing. Soon, it'll be all information that is locked down and controlled. Computers didn't use to be like this. Apple has land grabbed their way here and is now clamping down harder than ever before. If we don't revolt, we're going to wind up in a terrible place where Apple and Google make all the movies and ga…

Your best time to break up Apple was when Trump was President. Now it is President Biden on Jan 20th, 2021. Biden likes Apple and Trump does not.

Apple would be broken up into Mobile devices, Desktops, Software, MacOSX, and Internet services. MacOSX would have to be ported to the PC then with no owning the hardware the same with iOS.

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