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Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

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Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#211

Post by mattnewton »

mrtksn wrote: post #181
spywaregorilla wrote: post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm ok with Apple not letting Epic on the App Store so long as Apple doesn't forbid me from doing a private business exchange with Epic on my device.

> Apple doesn't forbid me from doing a private business exchange with Epic on my device I don't think Apple can do that. What Apple can do, is to not allow Epic to use their distribution service, known as AppStore. What you install on your iDevice is your own business and Apple cannot do anything about it. That's why jailbreaking your device is completely legal, you own your device you paid for and you can do whateve…

This seems to be overstating Apple’s position as neutral here, they are actively hostile to jailbreakers, and Apple will try to stop you any way they can.

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#212

Post by _fat_santa »

maxsilver wrote: post #169
HatchedLake721 wrote: post #104

That makes sense. Why would you do business ever again with someone who intentionally breached a contract, publicly smeared you with a calculated negative PR campaign and then sued you? After all this you offer them to allow Fortnite back if they reverse what they've done that breached the contract. Instead, they: - Reject the offer - Carry on smearing you - Lose the court case - Sweeney says they wouldn’t release iO…

The problem with this logic, is that Apple isn't really a "business" in this case. Epic and Apple aren't really "business partners". Apple is an unregulated privately-owned quasi-government entity with none of the responsibilities or checks on authority that a real government has. You can sue the Post Office, lose your case, and know they can't retaliate by stealing all your mail forever. You can sue the Department o…

> The problem with this logic, is that Apple isn't really a "business" in this case. Epic and Apple aren't really "business partners". Apple is an unregulated privately-owned quasi-government entity with none of the responsibilities or checks on authority that a real government has.

Are there any parallels in history we can point to for stuff like this? Maybe Standard Oil? I've been thinking alot about these massive companies lately, they are so massive and so intertwined in our society that maybe we should consider a new class of laws and regulations for these companies.

I think we should have a new class of laws and regulation called "for the common good" or something like that, and apply it to companies that have more than say 100M users. The libertarian in me hates this, but I think we also have to consider that these companies are larger and more influential then we ever though possible.

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#213

Post by UnpossibleJim »

Program_Install wrote: post #201

I am sick of Epic honestly, these companies always feeling entitled to someone else's work. With this fake "level playing field" nonsense. No one is forcing you to use iOS as your delivery platform. Epic is extremely disingenuous in this case, if they don't like it they have all the resources to create their own mobile device and platform.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Apple_Inc.

They have a section on Apple's anticompetitive behavior and a link to quashing smaller companies viewed as competition in the past.

I do admire your get up and go, though and I do think more people should put up more competition. I'm very break up monopoly, which we have quite a few examples of in America, using exorbitant market pressures to stifle competition.

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#214

Post by me_me_me »

spywaregorilla wrote: post #168
me_me_me wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is what i am saying, outcome and not the process. following epic vs apple fight - the whole play and dance, throwing mud etc etc. Its not worth your time, you cannot affect the outcome. Just ignore it all and learn about the outcome in the end.

And yet, here we are, you and me. Posting about it.

Technically we are clearing up my original unclear statement

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#215

Post by wutbrodo »

prions wrote: post #182
PedroBatista wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And thank "God" for people like him[1]. Life is unbearable under Tim Cook's "vision", the greed, arrogance and pettiness is at an all-time high, and it's not like it was low before.. [1] Also, nothing is black and white, of course Tim/Epic were looking to get more money from what their customers paid.

Because life under Epics vision of undercutting and delaying releases to Steam is so much more egalitarian and noble People are rooting for Sweeney due to his alpha nerd rage righteous more than how “good”Epic is to their customers

I dokt fully understand the dynamics here, but are those complaints independent of the issue being fought out between Apple and Epic? Ie, couldn't Epic still be engaging in "undercutting and delaying releases" whether or not they're paying 30% to Apple, or is that behavior somehow tangled up in this issue?

If it's not, then I don't see the contradiction here. Leaving aside people who make issues like this part of their identity, you can root for Epic in this specific case without deciding that you love Epic, with the focus on the impact of _this case_ on the industry. Just as you can root for Google in Google v Oracle without becoming a superfan of Google's.

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#216

Post by _jal »

foobarian wrote: post #183
_jal wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The "Services" category is 21% of their revenue. The "Completely disposable, non-repairable, non-recyclable electronics" category is the rest. https://www.statista.com/statistics/382260/segments-share-re...

Revenue != profit

Sure. And we don't know everything.

Iphones (about 50% of Apple's revenue) have a profit margin estimated around 40%.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/iphone-xs-max-how-much-profit-...

But hey, maybe the cable business sells things at a loss. We don't know.

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#217

Post by edoceo »

jasode wrote: post #8

It's interesting to compare the situation Epic got itself into with previous episodes of Facebook & Google breaking Apple's rules. When Facebook and Google misused Developer Enterprise certificates to go beyond internal testing and distribute apps to end-consumers , Apple revoked their accounts. Both Facebook & Google simply admitted they screwed up and Apple reinstated their accounts.[1] No lawsuits. Epic broke Appl…

That quote is by Omar Little in the TV show The Wire. That show was amazing. The actor (Michael?) recently died :(

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#218

Post by bashinator »

SeanA208 wrote: post #202
Paianni wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How do Epic's games benefit users in meaningful ways over any of the other non-exploitative games on the App Store?

> How do Epic's games benefit users in meaningful ways over any of the other games on the App Store? They benefit the users who want to play those games. Fortnite in particular is huge.

On top of that, there's a pretty strong argument to be made that Fortnite is as much about socialization and open-ended interaction as it is a game. Apple banning what's potentially a next-generation social network from their platform isn't a great look.

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#219

Post by tenaciousDaniel »

mattcantstop wrote: post #193

I understand Apple's decision to do this. They want to stick it to Epic. Completely understandable desire on Apple's part. But, sadly, Apple is letting their desire to get vengeance outweigh the interests of their users in having all the games they want to play on their devices. I have been realizing lately that my loyalty to Apple has been waning over the years after having invested heavily in the ecosystem. This is…

Yep. The time is really good for a new entry in the OS landscape. I'd jump ship pretty easily to anything that isn't windows.

Re: Apple Will Not Reinstate Epic’s Fortnite Developer Account

#220

Post by OmarComin »

jasode wrote: post #8

It's interesting to compare the situation Epic got itself into with previous episodes of Facebook & Google breaking Apple's rules. When Facebook and Google misused Developer Enterprise certificates to go beyond internal testing and distribute apps to end-consumers , Apple revoked their accounts. Both Facebook & Google simply admitted they screwed up and Apple reinstated their accounts.[1] No lawsuits. Epic broke Appl…

> you come at the King, you best not miss

"it's all in the game [App Store ecosystem's contractual specifications] yo"

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