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Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

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Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#311

Post by frakkingcylons »

simonh wrote: post #290
lordleft wrote: post #6

Imagine if Microsoft did this on PCs. a) prohibiting the installation of non-windows store software (sideloading) and b) insisting that all purchases done via apps give them a 30% cut. I think this is a ridiculous practice on the behalf of Apple.

Microsoft already does exactly this on console. When will we see the Google Stadia game streaming app on the XBOX? Does Microsoft really not take a cut of VBucks bought on the Microsoft store? This is just three big corporations fighting over their respective slices of the pie, if you think any of this is being said or done for your benefit I’m sure Epic has a plentiful supply of really tasty Koolaid for you. But no…

No consumer has the expectation that an Xbox will be capable of playing Playstation exclusives.

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#312

Post by adtac »

lordleft wrote: post #6

Imagine if Microsoft did this on PCs. a) prohibiting the installation of non-windows store software (sideloading) and b) insisting that all purchases done via apps give them a 30% cut. I think this is a ridiculous practice on the behalf of Apple.

Microsoft Surface RT did exactly that.

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#313

Post by AgentME »

lern_too_spel wrote: post #135
Seirdy wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It could be the case if AMP grows dominant; given the market share of Google Search, it could be enough to create a controlled (er, "curated") web in a similar spirit.

How? The publishers publish AMP pages, and multiple link aggregators (including Bing) consume them. I could see an Apple News style system being controlled like that because it forces the publishers to directly integrate with a single link aggregator.

Yeah I'm really lost about the AMP doomsaying. The fact google has a standard that anyone can use that lets pages be delivered faster and shows an icon on results that do that really doesn't seem like the sort of thing to get worried about. It's weird that this gets treated not only negatively but on par or worse than closed garden platforms.

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#314

Post by 013a »

ernst_klim wrote: post #262
kqvamxurcagg wrote: post #195

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a consumer, why can't there be an alternative App Store on IoS if I don't like the Apple terms? Apple shouldn't force consumers and developers to provide them with 30%.

If you don't like the service or product, don't buy it. There are Android, Sailfish, Postmarket, Mer. It's extremely unethical in my opinion to force some service provider to adjust the service to your needs/preferences.

These proceedings are not about users having no choice (though, they really don't: Has anyone here except you even heard of "mer"?)

They're about developers not having any choice. Developers have to release on iOS. There's no other option, because that's where most users are. Apple has a captive audience, and they're using that captive audience to abuse developers, who have no recourse.

The issue with many armchair commentators on HackerNews is that we look at the philosophy of the situation, and not the reality. The philosophy is "its Apple's platform, it's their right to run it however they want." The reality is "a billion people use this thing." The rules change when you get that big; its not about philosophy, its about doing what's best for everyone. To some degree, Apple does have a right to run their platform how they want: Fuck Their Rights.

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#315

Post by phreack »

rokobobo wrote: post #74
swiley wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apple is more than welcome to put whatever rules they want on their systems. My phone is not their system though, it’s mine! If I want to run tmux/fetchmail/ocamlc on it then it’s my problem not theirs!

I am not defending closed platforms, but technically, you are free to jailbreak your phone, they're just not obligated to provide any support after that, right? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IOS_jailbreaking#Legality

Say you go and buy the latest iPhone, on the latest OS, and wanted to play Fortnite on it. How'd you do it? I don't think it's even possible to jailbreak it at this point.

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#316

Post by ace_of_spades »

mapgrep wrote: post #198

You could argue about Apple's rights, or citizens' free speech rights, or consumer rights, under existing law. It would be an interesting discussion because I think it's a lot more complicated an issue that most people appreciate. But really why not talk about how we think things should work on platforms like iOS? What should the law be? What protects essential human rights, encourages creativity, and allows business…

Let‘s take the example of an autonomous car. Would you also argue that you have the right to run any software on it?

Looking a bit further down the line toward a society with more prevalent and powerful AI there will need to be some kind of certification that the software you are running is safe. It will be almost impossible to enforce this without the help of device manufacturers who will be mandated to only run safe software.

I don’t like that there is currently no way to get Apple to reduce its cut due to competitive pressure but mandating a right to run any kind of software people like is very short sighted move that would likely need to be reversed in time if we don’t want to sink into chaos as a society.

What I could imagine as a solution in the long run is a consortium type governing body for the certification of software that is made up of companies, specialists, and government reps. This would allow something like sideloading of approved apps to take place in a controlled way. Question would still be who would pay for this? Do they also take a cut? Do you pay a one time fee? Is it subsidized by taxes? Also could a consortium do this better than the manufacturer itself?

Maybe we end up with sideloading of apps that still need to be approved but for a one time fee rather than a revenue sharing model?

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#317

Post by m-p-3 »

IgorPartola wrote: post #170
Seirdy wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It could be the case if AMP grows dominant; given the market share of Google Search, it could be enough to create a controlled (er, "curated") web in a similar spirit.

Fuck AMP. The fact that there is no way to turn it off is one of the main reasons I don't use Google on my phone. DDG often has slightly poorer results, but I often find answers to my questions in Reddit threads and Reddit has a horrible mobile experience. Between AMP and them throwing 15 different popups at me to get their app (why would I want their single tab app?!?!), it's borderline unusable.

I'm still pissed that Mozilla handled the Firefox Fenix transition so badly. I had a perfectly working Redirect AMP to HTML [1] addon on mobile, and now you can only install a set of whitelisted addon for the moment. Until then, the Firefox experience is significantly degraded on Android.

[1]: https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/amp2html/

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#318

Post by tornato7 »

mrkramer wrote: post #238
lordleft wrote: post #6

Imagine if Microsoft did this on PCs. a) prohibiting the installation of non-windows store software (sideloading) and b) insisting that all purchases done via apps give them a 30% cut. I think this is a ridiculous practice on the behalf of Apple.

Apple says they do it because of security reasons. Windows' open and liberal way of doing things made it a fertile ground for millions of viruses. But I still think every OS should be open for developing and distribution of software no matter how serious malware threat is.

They say that, but this removal has exactly nil to do with security. Apple was getting $300m / year in revenue from this one app. Does it really cost that much to check this app for viruses? I don't think they'll be winning in court with this argument.

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#319

Post by jkepler »

vortico wrote: post #301

I'm a software developer considering releasing a mobile version of my software. Is there a way to completely bypass the iOS app store and allow users to download and install iOS apps from Safari? I hear stories like this all the time and don't want to touch the App Store one bit. Can this be done with Android? Perhaps I could release for Android-only and allow the app to be downloaded with Chrome.

On iOS a user would have to jailbreak their device, voiding their warrantee. Only other way I can think of would be a 100% web app, not an installable app, if you want to avoid the Apple App store.

On Android you can distribute your app via the f-droid app store (if its libre/free/open source), or other 3rd party stores like Amazon's app store. You can also allow users to directly download you .apk file from your own website.

Re: Apple just kicked Fortnite off the App Store

#320

Post by sweatpants »

Ziggy_Zaggy wrote: post #302
Seirdy wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It could be the case if AMP grows dominant; given the market share of Google Search, it could be enough to create a controlled (er, "curated") web in a similar spirit.

Ppl still use Google for searches? Mind.blown.

I have DDG as my search portal, and pretty much every single search is followed by another with !g on it. The results are terrible. So please recommend something better.
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