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iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

theverge.com

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Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#141

Post by Spooky23 »

chaosbolt wrote: post #63
paxys wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, but customers aren't going to be defending their decision after that like they always do.

Apple is a status brand, customers will still defend their decisions even if they found out that Tim Cook is a real life Sith lord or something of that magnitude.

I hear that argument often (although less than in the past) and always shake my head. In phones, Apple, Samsung, Google are analogous to Coke and Pepsi. Premium product, but achievable luxury. Apple is not Chanel.

Price sensitive folks go to MVNOs with off brand or lower spec devices - the equivalent to Dr Thunder at WalMart.

Apple is dominant in the US because they got their ass kicked in the services space by Google and learned their lesson. iCloud is an incredible platform today.

There’s really two androids. “Fancy Android” with Samsung Galaxy and Nexus - nice phones whose users seek them out. “Dumb Android” with customers steered by price or phone guys getting spiffed. The users don’t know or care about the device and have low value. The reality is, as with soda, the cheap product is marginally cheaper, but less pleasant and usually a poor value.

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#142

Post by lxgr »

FireBeyond wrote: post #98
lxgr wrote: post #29

Amazing! Now if Amazon could also fix the incredibly frustrating, long-standing bug of their iOS app where tapping the screen anywhere does not turn pages, but instead toggles through "page numbers" -> "time left in chapter" -> "time left in book" etc., I'd be happy with it.

Anywhere? I've never seen that bug. Now, if you tap it near the bottom on the left-hand side, it toggles through that, by design (just as it does on the Kindle tablets)...

Anywhere for me, but only about 1 out of 10 taps or so.

Drives me crazy, and I only swipe to turn pages at this point, which prevents it, but is somewhat uncomfortable.

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#143

Post by sagarm »

adamwk wrote: post #123
justanotheratom wrote: post #60

Apple is generally on the side of customers, but this is a clear example of how anti-customer-friendly their policy was. As a customer, I had to jump through hoops to buy a book on their premium platform.

I guess this is a side-effect where, as things stood, developers were incentivized to just forgo IAP and force users to jump through hoops to find how to give them money; and that in turn wasn’t customer friendly. But in general I much prefer IAP to whatever payment system the developer uses. It makes it so easy to do things like change or cancel any payments I have. In general I think centralized stores are customer…

Centralized stores are only superficially consumer friendly. The store owner is too well positioned to rent seek, and they will inevitably do so -- as Apple in fact is.

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#144

Post by wmf »

amanaplanacanal wrote: post #130
wmf wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Google and Amazon had some kind of cold war about them both wanting to control the living room or something. A few years ago they both decided to play nice.

Strangely I still can't buy kindle books from the Amazon app on Android, it still says I have to visit the Website.

I assume Google copied Apple's policy about taking a cut of every IAP.

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#145

Post by LeicaLatte »

Add that external payment button and watch my app magically disappear from search results.

Sure, they changed the rules on paper, but who's policing their algorithm? Nobody. They can tank my keywords overnight and call it "normal fluctuation."

FAANG will be fine, but indies? Gentle reminder that ASO funnels have no customer support. Might just suddenly "stop working."

Anyone else afraid to pull the trigger on this?

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#146

Post by niij »

redczar wrote: post #127
thaumasiotes wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have canceled Prime. It was a straightforward process. Orders go the way they usually do. There is a call to get Prime, but it's not like it's occupying a place where something else would normally be if you had Prime.

You can’t in good faith try to convince anyone that cancelling Prime is as easy as canceling a subscription on iOS. After cancelling prime whenever you order something dark patterns are used to try to get you to sign up. One such patten is that orders default to charging for shipping with a message stating that if you sign up for Prime shipping is free. This is even if your order qualifies for free shipping. Another…

They didn't say it was easier. But I would say my experience _cancelling_ isn't worth a 30% price increase for all my services.

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#147

Post by [deleted] »

LeicaLatte wrote: post #145

Add that external payment button and watch my app magically disappear from search results. Sure, they changed the rules on paper, but who's policing their algorithm? Nobody. They can tank my keywords overnight and call it "normal fluctuation." FAANG will be fine, but indies? Gentle reminder that ASO funnels have no customer support. Might just suddenly "stop working." Anyone else afraid to pull the trigger on this?

[deleted]

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#148

Post by rstupek »

paxys wrote: post #85
redczar wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I buy the security and privacy argument. I don’t want to deal with anyone other than Apple for refunds, cancellations, etc. I don’t trust anyone else to make these things easy.

No one is forcing you to move away from IAP and subscriptions. Just ignore the link that takes you to the web. And be ready to pay a 30% premium for your convenience, because that is what Apple has priced it at.

You’re making the assumption the developer continues to support IAP

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#149

Post by 8note »

redczar wrote: post #71
makeitdouble wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They might, but they'll have lost the "it's for consumer's good" battle through and through. 4 years ago some people were still swallowing the security or privacy argument, and users didn't understand what they were missing. This time any of these facades will be broken to death.

I buy the security and privacy argument. I don’t want to deal with anyone other than Apple for refunds, cancellations, etc. I don’t trust anyone else to make these things easy.

but what if i dont want to give apple that control?

i could buy different hardware, but apple is abusing their monopolist markets on order to buyout the good chips and prevent other hardware manufacturers from having access to equivalent tech.

if theyre gonna buy up all of a TSMC process, i should be able to run android on an iPhone

Re: iOS Kindle app now has a ‘get book’ button after changes to App Store rules

#150

Post by docdeek »

8note wrote: post #149
redczar wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I buy the security and privacy argument. I don’t want to deal with anyone other than Apple for refunds, cancellations, etc. I don’t trust anyone else to make these things easy.

but what if i dont want to give apple that control? i could buy different hardware, but apple is abusing their monopolist markets on order to buyout the good chips and prevent other hardware manufacturers from having access to equivalent tech. if theyre gonna buy up all of a TSMC process, i should be able to run android on an iPhone

Is there a benefit to running Android on an iPhone that would make it preferable to running it on an Android phone you buy at the same price point? Not suggesting you shouldn’t have the right to do it if you want to do it, but what would be the advantage?
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