Is it fair? Yes. The cost to Apple is largely flat. A free app costs as much to host per user as a paid one, and both arguably cost less than a service client

Is it fair? Yes. The cost to Apple is largely flat. A free app costs as much to host per user as a paid one, and both arguably cost less than a service client like Spotify. And what does Apple add? I hope the outcome of this is the dissolution of "free" distribution. It's not free, it's sending and revenue to Apple and Google, and the balance is (more than) paid off by paid apps. Flat fees for everyone, pay a cent or so per user per year. It's up to you to make that work.