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Earlier quoted context omitted.
An enormous and unwarranted sense of entitlement. Edit: Man goes to store to buy cereal. Buys milk, too. Cereal company asks store owner "But what do we get?"
If MS tried something like this, would you be ok with it too?
"All we require is that, if a publisher is making a subscription offer outside of the app, the same (or better) offer be made inside the app, so that customers can easily subscribe with one-click right in the app." "Apple's announcement went on to emphasize that publishers are not limited to using the App Store for subscriptions; they're allowed to use their own websites to sell subs." So purchase can be made in Safa…
So something like Rhapsody, for instance, CAN build an app giving you access to your existing collection. They can NOT, however, provide for the ability to sign-up new customers without giving Apple a cut. My bet is that punting out to Safari from your app won't cut it. It has to be initiated completely from outside your application.
I don't see how Apple's stance here is defensible or honest. They using their position as a large platform provider to steal from 3rd party developers.
To me this is akin to me writing a program for OSX that allows users to sign up for a subscription service, and apple taking a 30% cut of my cash flows just because I targeted their platform. They have been paid for their device by the consumer, they don't own all the software running on the device. They provide an OS, 3rd party developers provide the applications.
Most iOS programs receive absolutely no advertising from apple. In these cases how has apple contributed anything - how as Apple brought them customers. What if I run an ad-words campaign and drive my own app sales? If Apple were to make deals with developers for cuts of cash flow in exchange for advertising on the store, that would seem more honest.
To me this seems anti competitive and just plain dishonest. Apple is at risk of becoming the troll under the bridge here.
Hmmm....and if my app gets someone to buy your iPad, what do I get?
You get heavy promotion. Look at how Angry Birds and all the other games did by being featured on "New and Noteworthy" or "Staff Picks" or "Top Grossing Apps". It's a two-way street; don't make it sound like Apple is taking advantage of your efforts.
I think people hoping to hit the app store lotto by getting mentioned by Apple or TechCrunch are the same kinds of people that get duped into doing spec work.
"I'll be a millionaire just as soon as my iFart clone gets listed as one of Apple's Staff Picks."
So arrogant - "We get you subscribers"! How did they do that? They didn't create the ad, they didn't put it in the app, they did diddly-squat in fact. You (the app developer) did the work, take the risk, and now cannot even get paid properly - you have to essentially make iPhone your sole outlet, or charge 30% premium everywhere else.
They created the very ecosystem in which your app exists. I'd say that's a pretty important aspect of the whole app development model.
What about 30% of all sales of Windows Software?
Where does the ownership of the OS author end and the ownership of the 3rd party developer begin?
What if Apple insisted upon 50%?
But then again: it's like the ebook purchase thing -- Amazon and BN have been strangely silent -- maybe they decided to relent, maybe they're going to get a special deal, or maybe they'll pull their apps just before the ipad2 launches. :-)
To round the issue out from their side, not that I agree, from their point of view, it's "If we bring you subscribers via our devices, we deserve a cut"
Doesn't this all seem a little wrong?
I read many digital PDF's (like Hacker Monthly) and though I enjoy downloading and reading the PDF on my iMac, I would be delighted to pay 99 cents to have each issue delivered to my iPad on a monthly basis.
And as a developer, it's added value.
The flip side of course is that these apps make the iPhone/iPad more appealing to more people. I can see Apple shooting themselves in the foot with their predatory practices against app publishers. Losing a big chunk of your margin while developing apps for free for Apple's products is only going to be sustainable for so long. And more likely then not, it will drive away the big players first where each percent means…
I very much doubt that the availability of magazine and newspaper apps like The Daily will be a primary reason for customers to buy an iPad.