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How many app developers feel they are getting gouged? I’m an iOS developer and don’t feel that way? Is it when you get big and greedy?

zepto 6y ago
Exactly, this entire thing is about big intermediaries getting a piece of the pie through the legal system. Smaller developers will be the casualties of a multi-store situation because they will be forced to support the them all. There will therefore be no competitive pressure on benefits for developers. This is all about more middlemen making money.
- sushid 6y ago
  How do you rationalize this? There's no situation where having a legitimate competitor to the App Store makes the situation somehow worse for smaller developers. At worst, they continue their business as usual. At best the competitive pressure allows their business to stay the same but with higher margins. Most likely they would eke out a bit more money than the status quo by using another App Store competitor alongside the App Store if they choose to do so.
sushid 6y ago
The irony of calling an app developer "big and greedy" in face of Apple is not lost on me here. 30% in pure profit would means a lot to regular companies/folks as well, not just the "big and greedy" ones. Just because you don't feel the pain doesn't mean other ones do. And ultimately, some of this cost is burdened by the end user purchasing the app which is obviously harmful to everyday users such as myself.
heavyset_go 6y ago
I'm not aware of another industry that puts up with 30% fees on all the products that they sell. GrubHub et al are notorious in the restaurant industry for their 30% cuts on orders, and owners are doing everything they can to eliminate those companies from the picture. Artists, on the other hand, only have to deal with a 10% to 15% cut when they sell their music digitally or physically through Bandcamp. I'm a small and modest developer, and I feel like 30% and $99/year is too much. Mind you, Apple is a trillion dollar company that will take a 30% cut whether you're a worker in the 3rd world or a kid in college. I'm not sure I follow your "big and greedy" rhetoric at all here.

zepto 6y ago

Exactly, this entire thing is about big intermediaries getting a piece of the pie through the legal system. Smaller developers will be the casualties of a multi-store situation because they will be forced to support the them all. There will therefore be no competitive pressure on benefits for developers. This is all about more middlemen making money.

sushid 6y ago
How do you rationalize this? There's no situation where having a legitimate competitor to the App Store makes the situation somehow worse for smaller developers. At worst, they continue their business as usual. At best the competitive pressure allows their business to stay the same but with higher margins. Most likely they would eke out a bit more money than the status quo by using another App Store competitor alongside the App Store if they choose to do so.

sushid 6y ago

The irony of calling an app developer "big and greedy" in face of Apple is not lost on me here. 30% in pure profit would means a lot to regular companies/folks as well, not just the "big and greedy" ones. Just because you don't feel the pain doesn't mean other ones do. And ultimately, some of this cost is burdened by the end user purchasing the app which is obviously harmful to everyday users such as myself.

heavyset_go 6y ago

I'm not aware of another industry that puts up with 30% fees on all the products that they sell. GrubHub et al are notorious in the restaurant industry for their 30% cuts on orders, and owners are doing everything they can to eliminate those companies from the picture. Artists, on the other hand, only have to deal with a 10% to 15% cut when they sell their music digitally or physically through Bandcamp. I'm a small and modest developer, and I feel like 30% and $99/year is too much. Mind you, Apple is a trillion dollar company that will take a 30% cut whether you're a worker in the 3rd world or a kid in college. I'm not sure I follow your "big and greedy" rhetoric at all here.