5 ms·

> AKA Highway robbery and Google doesn't do any better. It should be in the single digits. Why single digits?

by wklauss 9y ago

weaksauce 9y ago
why almost a third of your revenue?
- baldfat 9y ago
  Which for many developers is more then their own cut of an app?
  - astrodust 9y ago
    It's a shit-ton more than most musicians get from a record label deal. It's also way more than you'll get shipping for XBox or PS4.
- scarface74 9y ago
  Well, when I was actually working for a company that billed me out to clients I would have killed to get 70% of my billable rate.
cortesoft 9y ago
Because a fair rate is always determined by what number base you use.
pdelbarba 9y ago
Why not? They make plenty of money elsewhere and there's no value-add here aside from the storefront that you're forced to use anyway. It's basically a self-enforced monopoly.
baldfat 9y ago
> Why single digits? What's is their cost? When you look at an ebook Apple makes more money then the Author of a book. Most developers don't make a profit but Apple is guaranteed a profit form each purchase. http://alltopstartups.com/2016/03/30/do-apps-still-make-money/ http://alltopstartups.com/2016/03/30/do-apps-still-make-mone... When the creator makes less then the deliver there is a problem. When the deliver makes money from purchase 1 and the developer might never see a penny after thousands of purchases there is a problem. A developer makes an app that cost her $10,000 and she must sell $14,300 to break even and not make a dime. Apple will make $4,299.
- abakker 9y ago
  well, that's not necessarily fair. Apple has done an incredible amount of work to give devs and content creators an audience in the first place. Their rules are no different from many others. The economics of a "good business" need to take into account the delivery costs. Just because those costs are borne by a 3rd party (apple), does not mean those costs aren't real. Yes, shifting the costs more on apple would change the economics for app developers, but as long as the economics remain great for apple, they keep developing better services, devices, and platforms for devs to use (and, they give some of that away for very cheap or free).
  - baldfat 9y ago
    I know quite a few App Store Developers and I don't think a single one would say that Apple does the following: > they keep developing better services, devices, and platforms for devs to use (and, they give some of that away for very cheap or free). Follow the money and Apple, Google and Valve are making a killing off the backs of creators. The cost of delivery is what 1% if that?
    - CountSessine 9y ago
      Follow the money and Apple, Google and Valve are making a killing off the backs of creators. The cost of delivery is what 1% if that? Well, if the cost of delivery and maintenance of these platforms is so low and the charge to developers is so high, why not arbitrage this? Create your own trusted multi-billion hardware/software platform with expedited payment and protection from cheating, and you can cut developers a better deal!
      - baldfat 9y ago
        Twitch is, gog.com, gamersgate.com, humblebundle.com, and etc. etc. etc.
    - ryanwaggoner 9y ago
      I'm an iOS developer and I'd definitely say that. I think you should forget about "hard" costs. They're completely irrelevant to how valuable something is.
SyneRyder 9y ago
> Why single digits? Competitors to the Mac app store charge in the single digit range, whether it's Paypal or Stripe at about 2.9%, or a more full-service offering like Paddle at 5% + 50c, FastSpring at 5.9% + 95c, or Avangate at 4% - 8%.
- eastWestMath 9y ago
  ...You think Paypal is a competitor to the app store?
  - SyneRyder 9y ago
    To the Mac App Store, in that you can sell your software from your own website & take the payments using Paypal. Fastspring / Avangate / Paddle are better comparisons, as they also handle license/serial keys, file hosting, subscription management & tax accounting like the Mac App Store does, and have been doing so before the App Store ever existed.
kuschku 9y ago
The EU just limited credit card fees to be below 0.25%. Apple and Google can have their 30%, but only if they allow third party stores to exist just equally.

> AKA Highway robbery and Google doesn't do any better. It should be in the single digits. Why single digits?

weaksauce 9y ago

why almost a third of your revenue?

baldfat 9y ago
Which for many developers is more then their own cut of an app?
- astrodust 9y ago
  It's a shit-ton more than most musicians get from a record label deal. It's also way more than you'll get shipping for XBox or PS4.
scarface74 9y ago
Well, when I was actually working for a company that billed me out to clients I would have killed to get 70% of my billable rate.

cortesoft 9y ago

Because a fair rate is always determined by what number base you use.

pdelbarba 9y ago

Why not? They make plenty of money elsewhere and there's no value-add here aside from the storefront that you're forced to use anyway. It's basically a self-enforced monopoly.

baldfat 9y ago

> Why single digits? What's is their cost? When you look at an ebook Apple makes more money then the Author of a book. Most developers don't make a profit but Apple is guaranteed a profit form each purchase. http://alltopstartups.com/2016/03/30/do-apps-still-make-money/ http://alltopstartups.com/2016/03/30/do-apps-still-make-mone... When the creator makes less then the deliver there is a problem. When the deliver makes money from purchase 1 and the developer might never see a penny after thousands of purchases there is a problem. A developer makes an app that cost her $10,000 and she must sell $14,300 to break even and not make a dime. Apple will make $4,299.

abakker 9y ago
well, that's not necessarily fair. Apple has done an incredible amount of work to give devs and content creators an audience in the first place. Their rules are no different from many others. The economics of a "good business" need to take into account the delivery costs. Just because those costs are borne by a 3rd party (apple), does not mean those costs aren't real. Yes, shifting the costs more on apple would change the economics for app developers, but as long as the economics remain great for apple, they keep developing better services, devices, and platforms for devs to use (and, they give some of that away for very cheap or free).
- baldfat 9y ago
  I know quite a few App Store Developers and I don't think a single one would say that Apple does the following: > they keep developing better services, devices, and platforms for devs to use (and, they give some of that away for very cheap or free). Follow the money and Apple, Google and Valve are making a killing off the backs of creators. The cost of delivery is what 1% if that?
  - CountSessine 9y ago
    Follow the money and Apple, Google and Valve are making a killing off the backs of creators. The cost of delivery is what 1% if that? Well, if the cost of delivery and maintenance of these platforms is so low and the charge to developers is so high, why not arbitrage this? Create your own trusted multi-billion hardware/software platform with expedited payment and protection from cheating, and you can cut developers a better deal!
    - baldfat 9y ago
      Twitch is, gog.com, gamersgate.com, humblebundle.com, and etc. etc. etc.
  - ryanwaggoner 9y ago
    I'm an iOS developer and I'd definitely say that. I think you should forget about "hard" costs. They're completely irrelevant to how valuable something is.

SyneRyder 9y ago

> Why single digits? Competitors to the Mac app store charge in the single digit range, whether it's Paypal or Stripe at about 2.9%, or a more full-service offering like Paddle at 5% + 50c, FastSpring at 5.9% + 95c, or Avangate at 4% - 8%.

eastWestMath 9y ago
...You think Paypal is a competitor to the app store?
- SyneRyder 9y ago
  To the Mac App Store, in that you can sell your software from your own website & take the payments using Paypal. Fastspring / Avangate / Paddle are better comparisons, as they also handle license/serial keys, file hosting, subscription management & tax accounting like the Mac App Store does, and have been doing so before the App Store ever existed.

kuschku 9y ago

The EU just limited credit card fees to be below 0.25%. Apple and Google can have their 30%, but only if they allow third party stores to exist just equally.