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Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

techcrunch.com

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Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#141

Post by FirmwareBurner »

izacus wrote: post #107
benced wrote: post #73

Even setting aside the dubious morality of Apple's rules on iOS, I feel like I'm going insane watching Apple be maximally aggressive. The EU loves regulating! There's nothing they love more! It seems supremely unwise to give them additional excuses to do something they clearly want to do anyways.

Having worked for many bosses, never ever never undersestimate the power of ego of an executive. It's only second to the ego of a lawyer. Many of them will tank their company and their client if they get their ego bruised and feel publicly humiliated. Those are hyper competitive people which see live as zero sum game and are trained in life to never, ever, lose a challenge or competition for domination. ESPECIALLY in…

What if, and hear me out, execs could go to jail instead of just their company paying fines as if they're parking tickets? Would they still be as cocky?

Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#142

Post by abhinavk »

droopyEyelids wrote: post #100
s3r3nity wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quite an authoritarian take.

Both sides are authoritarian. One is a private company with more money than most countries, one is an economic union nominally representing the people of many countries. I don't know where I fall on this issue personally, but siding with Apple is probably more authoritarian.

People think Apple is a struggling company still making iPod and PowerMacs to stay afloat.

Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#143

Post by JumpCrisscross »

benced wrote: post #135
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> watching Apple be maximally aggressive Sweeney allegedly tweeted that he would breach his contract with Apple. Apple reached out and asked if he was being hysterical for public display. He didn’t clarify. At that point, Epic credibly threatened breach of contract. This is a commercial dispute between multi-billion dollar companies, both of whom charge outrageous platform fees, both of whom seem to enjoy being drama…

This is flatly false. Schiller emailed Sweeney asking for assurances and Sweeney responded with: > Epic and its subsidiaries are acting in good faith and will comply with all terms of current and future agreements with Apple, and we'll be glad to provide Apple with any specific further assurances on the topic that you'd like. Without reply, Apple summarily terminated their developer account a week later. It seems obv…

> there haven't been any threatening noncompliance

Do we have neutral sources for these claims and emails?

Apple said Sweeney threatened to breach contract and didn’t repudiate in private. Epic claims it didn’t threaten and did repudiate. We’re in a he said she said absent independent sourcing.

Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#144

Post by JumpCrisscross »

itsdrewmiller wrote: post #140
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> watching Apple be maximally aggressive Sweeney allegedly tweeted that he would breach his contract with Apple. Apple reached out and asked if he was being hysterical for public display. He didn’t clarify. At that point, Epic credibly threatened breach of contract. This is a commercial dispute between multi-billion dollar companies, both of whom charge outrageous platform fees, both of whom seem to enjoy being drama…

Epic has a 12% fee, while Apple has a 30% fee - I don't think those are equally outrageous and I would go so far as to say one is extremely reasonable.

> Epic has a 12% fee, while Apple has a 30% fee

Epic’s fee is global. Once you sign with them, you pay that on every install. There is also the 5% royalty, which brings the actual fee to 17% since we’re comparing non-small developer figures.

Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#145

Post by JumpCrisscross »

FirmwareBurner wrote: post #141
izacus wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having worked for many bosses, never ever never undersestimate the power of ego of an executive. It's only second to the ego of a lawyer. Many of them will tank their company and their client if they get their ego bruised and feel publicly humiliated. Those are hyper competitive people which see live as zero sum game and are trained in life to never, ever, lose a challenge or competition for domination. ESPECIALLY in…

What if, and hear me out, execs could go to jail instead of just their company paying fines as if they're parking tickets? Would they still be as cocky?

> execs could go to jail instead of just their company paying fines as if they're parking tickets?

You want to send an executive to jail for cancelling a contract?

I’d be curious for a jurisdiction to try this. In my opinion, I wouldn’t want to do business in a place where commercial disputes can be twisted by a political insider into jail time.

Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#146

Post by abduhl »

FirmwareBurner wrote: post #141
izacus wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having worked for many bosses, never ever never undersestimate the power of ego of an executive. It's only second to the ego of a lawyer. Many of them will tank their company and their client if they get their ego bruised and feel publicly humiliated. Those are hyper competitive people which see live as zero sum game and are trained in life to never, ever, lose a challenge or competition for domination. ESPECIALLY in…

What if, and hear me out, execs could go to jail instead of just their company paying fines as if they're parking tickets? Would they still be as cocky?

The question you should be asking is: would execs still exist? And we know the answer to this from before the advent of corporations: yes, just as tycoons and barons with barely any checks on their political and financial power instead of as execs.

Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#148

Post by FirmwareBurner »

zshrc wrote: post #131
FirmwareBurner wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Would you also defend Microsoft of the 90's with the same argument for the similar issue? At least Microsoft had no way of stopping you selling apps for Windows but Apple is a next level of nefarious.

Microsoft didn't have competition in the 90s. Apple has plenty of competition, they've just built up a competitive advantage which is their fully-integrated platform. Googles been trying to build one on the Pixel for years and haven't come close to their success. Apples been doing this "next level of nefarious" since the App Store's introduction in iPhoneOS 3.0, and it's been fine up to this point, otherwise the plat…

>Apple has plenty of competition

What competition? Apple has a 87% market share amongst US teenage population[1], Epic's core gamer market. It's basically a monopoly amongst their core demographic which will grow up to be adults with jobs and paycheck and guess what they'll buy? More Apple. With [1] https://www.barrons.com/articles/apple-stock-teens-iphone-e5...

Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#149

Post by __loam »

mattbrewsbytes wrote: post #92
benced wrote: post #73

Even setting aside the dubious morality of Apple's rules on iOS, I feel like I'm going insane watching Apple be maximally aggressive. The EU loves regulating! There's nothing they love more! It seems supremely unwise to give them additional excuses to do something they clearly want to do anyways.

> Apple be maximally aggressive From an observation standpoint seeing how Microsoft behaved in the 90's and onward, they (Apple) are behaving very similarly - almost exactly with what MS did for Windows back then. I have a growing distaste for Apple corporate/mgmt each day even though I am surrounded by their devices.

Apple has been dragged kicking and screaming into more consumer friendly positions since the iPhone was released. It took years for them to simply switch to a more open charging port standard.

Re: Apple terminates Epic Games developer account, calling it a 'threat' to iOS

#150

Post by JumpCrisscross »

testfrequency wrote: post #109
lapcat wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is indeed strange.

I was going to start an Ask HN post on this very thing just this morning, so instead I’ll just reply here. The last few weeks, HN seems to be suppressing Apple headlines. They will be on the front page, but then drop off minutes later - despite being fresh, growing in votes and engagement, and being high quality articles. Meanwhile, positive headlines about OpenAI will be up for hours… Also, don’t blame the mod tools…

I didn’t flag this one, but a lot of the debates wind up with pro-Apple/anti-Apple generalities. Which isn’t interesting. Even in this thread, it’s mostly people expressing outrage and disgust or reflexive dismissal; few actual thoughts.
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