Apple's claims of a "free ride" frankly seem ludicrous. There seem to me to be 3 issues at hand here. 1. The magnitude of the 30% charge, and the level of just

Apple's claims of a "free ride" frankly seem ludicrous. There seem to me to be 3 issues at hand here. 1. The magnitude of the 30% charge, and the level of justification this has. 2. The ability for Apple to itself be a provider/competitor to those on the marketplace, such that they are not paying this 30% fee (and can immediately be 30% cheaper). 3. Whether Apple should be allowed to run a marketplace that operates on a whim, unwritten and ever-changing rules, informal policies, and no significant judicial remedies - if Government tried to retrospectively change the rules on you, you can sue them, and win. Apple can decide to eject you from its platform at its whim, and you are forced to accept this to use the platform.