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Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

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Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#191

Post by dehrmann »

bushbaba wrote: post #184
edouard-harris wrote: post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Google also pays Apple 7 billion annually^ to be its default SE. It's actually between $8-12 billion now. [1] > Yahoo & MSFT's experience as 2nd place in that market was working very hard and earning $0 profits. This is an exaggeration though. MSFT made nearly $8 billion in revenue last year from search (mostly Bing), and the business has naturally high margins so it would be extremely surprising if it was unprofit…

It’s likely the payoff is also to prevent apple from building its own search engine to compete. As googles payoff is so lucrative

Maybe, but Google Maps seems to do fine on iPhone. Google and Apple might have their own numbers on this that disagree, though.

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#192

Post by dylan604 »

danShumway wrote: post #175
roenxi wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem with that line of accusation is that Apple having a monopoly on the production and maintenance of Apple products isn't a very compelling threat. In a more reasonable market, like smartphones or phones in total, Apple just does not have a monopoly. There are alternatives.

Keep in mind that the words "reasonable market" and "alternatives" are doing a lot of work here. From the linked documents: > If Android competed with iOS on app transactions, the market competition would make Android apps cheaper for users and attract developers to launch their apps first (or even only) on Android. [...] After a meeting involving senior executives of Google and Apple, notes of the meeting were excha…

Non-sequitor: I hate that it's going to be Epic that really gets this to take hold. If it were anybody else. This is like watching a sports game where you want both teams to loose. There's a lot of Apple iOS policy I don't like, but I also don't like Epic (personal reasons). This would put Epic on a pedestal that I'd rather not see.

I do shudder at the day of seeing websites that only work on Chrome for iOS, an app that I will never use.

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#193

Post by smabie »

arkitaip wrote: post #11
throwaway2048 wrote: post #4

We have here smoking gun evidence that both Google and Apple themselves see themselves as a monopoly, see them commenting about how they "essentially function as one company", yet I absolutely guarantee we will get a torrent of comments denying that in this thread, I am sure with a lot of smug pasting of dictionary entries.

As always when mega corps are involved we have to at least entertain the idea that their employees and agents come out in full force to defend the actions of the corp. Anything else would be dangerously naive.

Alternatively, maybe some people just disagree?

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#194

Post by makeitdouble »

noptd wrote: post #181
dalbasal wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100 years in the electric chair! This isn't an "infraction" you can police with a fine, jail, etc. It's an industrial structure. The competition is competition for monopoly, a superior & highly profitable market position of some sort. Those are what make Google, FB & so profitable. Google competed with Yahoo & Microsoft for years in search marketing. I don't believe either ever made significant profits. Their "market…

>This isn't an "infraction" you can police with a fine, jail, etc. I disagree - governments legislate their markets so it is absolutely punishable if defined as such.

I think parent’s point is that a one time slap (as big as it might be) as we do with other crimes wouldn’t solve the issue. The punishment has to be more structural, legislating for instance as you suggest, or dramatically changing the entity’s structure as we did with past monopolies.

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#195

Post by HWR_14 »

NorwegianDude wrote: post #35
jasode wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>In 2001, Microsoft "constituted unlawful monopolization" under Antitrust Act for bundling a web browser with their operating system. That reductive summary is repeated but isn't accurate. Microsoft didn't get in trouble for adding its own IE web browser to Windows. (Software companies always add new features and enhancements.) The key nuance that triggered the government lawsuit was anti-competitive actions such as…

His point still stands, especially on iOS where other browsers isn't even allowed and every browser has to be basically a reskin of safari. That way others can't add features or stability, forcing developers to use the app store and give Apple a large cut. This is much more serious that the Microsoft case.

If Apple allowed other browsers beyond Safari, Google (and others) would stop supporting Safari and force people to download Chrome (or FF, their supported also-ran). We'd be back where a giant company 100% sets web standards.

Apple standing against that is important for the open web.

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#196

Post by [deleted] »

dehrmann wrote: post #191
bushbaba wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s likely the payoff is also to prevent apple from building its own search engine to compete. As googles payoff is so lucrative

Maybe, but Google Maps seems to do fine on iPhone. Google and Apple might have their own numbers on this that disagree, though.

[deleted]

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#197

Post by makeitdouble »

spicybright wrote: post #6

tbh, isn't it completely in google's right to do this? It's not a regulated market, it's google's store.

That’s kind of the point of the lawsuit, to get some oversight in a mafia and the mob kind market.

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#198

Post by 0x0nyandesu »

techrat wrote: post #189
0x0nyandesu wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the entertainment industry not having an iPhone literally hurts your career. If you can't use iMessage people look at you weird and you are literally excluded from social circles. I know someone that was in tech and went into music and even though she prefers Android she ended up caving and getting an iPhone.

I work in the entertainment industry. You're full of shit.

Lmk when you get invited to an after party with the talent in the Hollywood hills. And by talent mean 18-25 year old valley girls.

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#199

Post by jokethrowaway »

jasode wrote: post #30
mard wrote: post #18

In 2001, Microsoft "constituted unlawful monopolization" under Antitrust Act for bundling a web browser with their operating system. 20 years later, Apple and Google bundle not only their browsers, but whole irreplaceable app stores with no legal consequences. I don't know how the law sees it, but it's simply illogical from the common sense standpoint.

>In 2001, Microsoft "constituted unlawful monopolization" under Antitrust Act for bundling a web browser with their operating system. That reductive summary is repeated but isn't accurate. Microsoft didn't get in trouble for adding its own IE web browser to Windows. (Software companies always add new features and enhancements.) The key nuance that triggered the government lawsuit was anti-competitive actions such as…

I hope Apple treatment of low performance iOS webviews will be treated similarly

Re: Google’s ‘Project Hug’ paid out huge sums to keep game devs in the Play Store

#200

Post by travoc »

defaulty wrote: post #180
beckman466 wrote: post #3

> Larry Page told Steve Jobs in 2010 that "There will always be places we compete, and places where we cooperate." > After another meeting between Apple and Google senior executives, notes showed that the execs agreed: "Our vision is that we work as if we are one company." > That is a damning little piece of evidence. Looks like it’s exactly the meritocracies Google and Apple claim to be, nothing monopoly-like to be…

In business school lingo, this is called 'coopetition' which is just a portmanteau of the two positions: cooperation & competition.

In the DOJ’s world, it’s called collusion.
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