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Good. I remember when this lawsuit first got announced, everybody was calling Epic crazy, but I always felt like something was needed to force Apple's hand. Eve
by dimmke 5y ago
Good. I remember when this lawsuit first got announced, everybody was calling Epic crazy, but I always felt like something was needed to force Apple's hand. Even if they ultimately lose, they forced Apple to cut the percentage they take for small apps in half, which is a big concession in itself. This will likely pave the way for more concessions too, and maybe eventually some form of regulation.
I tried my hand at making apps. I built an app that got some traction on the app store and organically acquired about 1k DAU. I was making <$100 a month in in-app purchases. Competing to improve my organic ranking in search terms (and against their paid search placement) I had a free tier that used Google's AdMob.
Eventually, Google suspended my ads for some reason (They claimed fraudulent clicks - but I know I wasn't clicking my own ads, and of course there's no real path to appeal.)
And it just struck me at how absurd this whole thing is. I'm working so hard, and these companies win either way. Why on earth would anybody try to build their business when they can't even exist on these popular general computing platforms without Apple or Google taking a sizable cut, no matter what happens. And they can shut you down at any time. Google can cut off ads, Apple can have a reviewer reinterpret rules (ex. Hey, WordPress app etc...)
Mobile computing is just too important to be this locked down. Something has got to give. I really think that's why Tim Sweeney used his company to move things forward on this front. Because waiting for legislators to do something in the U.S. could mean waiting 2-3 more decades.
Ultimately I shut down the app even though it was making a meager profit because the fundamentals of such a business are just awful. That was before Apple cut their take to 15%.
- karmakaze 5y agoAnd all most 'apps' need these days is to have an icon of the website with cookies on the home screen and switchable from the apps list. But then how does Apple/Google get a cut?