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Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

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Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#131

Post by gantrol »

meowtimemania wrote: post #39

I don't totally understand the concept of having an everything app. Isn't the OS the "everything app"? Do people like the wechat experience because you have one login and don't have to go through an onboarding process in every mini-app?

Because nearly all Chinese people use WeChat, but not all Chinese people use iPhones.

For Chinese people, you could say that WeChat serves as an OS with a greater coverage. It could even be said that WeChat represents half of China's mobile Internet.

Only after acquiring a substantial user base did WeChat launch its "Mini Programs". This feature has further boosted the usage of WeChat. For instance, during the COVID-19 pandemic, certain types of apps forced people in remote areas to start using WeChat. However, the fundamental reason is that the usage rate of WeChat was already high.

This explains why, outside of China, WeChat's "Mini Programs" aren't particularly striking: in those regions, there simply aren't enough WeChat users.

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#132

Post by paulmd »

yreg wrote: post #54
spacebanana7 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Adobe almost killed Apple by developing Windows-first and sometimes Windows-only products in the 1990s. Many professionals cared about Adobe software more than their hardware device, so moved platforms. Adobe’s motivation was largely revenge against Apple for opening up printing standards. Previously Adobe had a de facto monopoly license on these. Steve Jobs was extremely pissed off by seeing Apple get hurt for makin…

Steve eventually got his revenge: https://web.archive.org/web/20170615060422/https://www.apple...

This is a perfect explanation of apple’s relationship with NVIDIA and the CUDA platform too.

Bumpgate affected AMD products too, this was the era of baking your 7850 to try and reflow the solder bumps, and apple was just trying to get the supplier to pay for the problems with the RoHS solders that apple specified in the product designs. Apple has always been a clientzilla that ruthlessly leans on its partners and suppliers (most recently Goldman Sachs is feeling the pain from the Apple Card) and believes that it’s a privilege to hold their business. And nvidia isn’t a company that got rich by bending over for that kind of treatment either (see also their relation with Microsoft).

Apple really wanted to terminate their relationship with nvidia anyway and this was just them demanding a big check on the way out the door. Nothing like making your ex pay for the cost of you moving out during the breakup.

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#133

Post by xxoo »

This article is obviously biased in every possible way to measure it.

1. WeChat is not the only app that comes with "mini program", Alipay for a big example. 2. WeChat is not the only app that delivers news and media information and consumes a huge amount of users's time, DouYin for a big example.

Why mention and only mention political events when you are talking about an iOS app and Apple store censorship ?

Or you're just merely talking about politics of your value.

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#134

Post by hackernewds »

yreg wrote: post #53
spacebanana7 wrote: post #4

Much like Adobe did to Macs in the 1990s, WeChat has become so powerful they control the platform. Apple can’t remove WeChat because most consumers would rather change device hardware than lose access to WeChat.

App Store was never a totally level playing field either. Amazon Prime Video got a discount on App Store fees[0]. FaceBook[1] and Uber[2] did things for which they got a slap on the wrist. If a less-important developer did that, they would have been banned from the App Store forever. [0] https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/30/21348108/apple-amazon-pri... [1] https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/30/18203551/apple-facebook-b...…

Always blows my mind that Epic lost to Apple, it is the clearest example of a champion - making monopoly that has ever existed.

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#135

Post by hackernewds »

em-bee wrote: post #55
lessname wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it really the power of WeChat or the chinese government though?

it's wechat. you really need it in china. it's practically impossible to stay in touch with most people if you don't have it. a phone that can't run wechat is pretty useless.

then they could simply just enable it in China and not in the US

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#136

Post by _lvbh »

woooooo wrote: post #59
derefr wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

China is becoming more liberal in the classical sense (more money accruing to regular "new money" entrepreneurs instead of to oligarchs); they just haven't hit the "borgeoisie-funded revolt against the aristocracy" phase of liberalization yet. Give them 50 years.

They boiled the frog with the bourgeoisie. For a long time, there were workarounds if you're generally smart and educated. Nowadays its a hacker level operation to get on a VPN.

Everyone I know uses the Trojan-gfw protocol. Very reliable

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#137

Post by ospider »

em-bee wrote: post #55
lessname wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it really the power of WeChat or the chinese government though?

it's wechat. you really need it in china. it's practically impossible to stay in touch with most people if you don't have it. a phone that can't run wechat is pretty useless.

Actually, it's both. Back in 2022, you have to install either WeChat or Alipay to scan the government's health code literally everywhere.

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#138

Post by [deleted] »

game_the0ry wrote: post #25

When the west opened trade to China, policy experts assumed China would become more liberal like the west. Instead, the west is becoming more like China. [1, 2, 3] [1] https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/07/googles-web-integrit... [2] https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/07/ready-for-your-e... [3] (countless more examples, especially recently...)

[deleted]

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#139

Post by scarface_74 »

hackernewds wrote: post #134
yreg wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

App Store was never a totally level playing field either. Amazon Prime Video got a discount on App Store fees[0]. FaceBook[1] and Uber[2] did things for which they got a slap on the wrist. If a less-important developer did that, they would have been banned from the App Store forever. [0] https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/30/21348108/apple-amazon-pri... [1] https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/30/18203551/apple-facebook-b...…

Always blows my mind that Epic lost to Apple, it is the clearest example of a champion - making monopoly that has ever existed.

You don’t think Epic gets special comarketing deals from console makers?

Re: Apple’s strict on App Store rules but gives WeChat a free pass (2020)

#140

Post by eunos »

Barrin92 wrote: post #127
eunos wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> policy experts assumed China would become more liberal like the west. There are many flavors of liberalism and yes 2023 China is more liberal than 1980 China. If you could explain 2023 China to Deng Xiaoping in 1980 he'd think China would be a degenerate state. The fethism with political liberalism above all needs to stop

Yup, Deng literally invaded Vietnam and rolled tanks over dissidents. In Lee Kuan Yew's Biography he recounts talking to Deng shortly after Tiananmen, and Deng by LKY's account just said straight to his face "if I had to kill a hundred thousand students to restore order, I would have done it". I genuinely have to laugh when people tend to say things like "I wish China was as liberal as it was back under Deng", people…

I'm convinced that what make a nation is perceived as liberal is a function of its relative power and subservience to the west instead of its inherent liberal value
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