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As someone who used to be in the field of public relations before starting a career in software - I don't understand why they are doing this. Surely they realis

As someone who used to be in the field of public relations before starting a career in software - I don't understand why they are doing this. Surely they realise that this stuff is going to end up on mainstream media and damage their image? EDIT: I get what people are saying about the App Store fees but reputational damage does cost money, possibly quite a lot.

wlesieutre 3y ago
Who needs reputation when you can have a 30% cut of every microtransaction game instead?
jncfhnb 3y ago
It can’t possibly hurt more than what they gain from racketeering
r00fus 3y ago
This is to prevent the EU DMA rules (and 3rd party EU app stores) from infecting their other markets. The idea being, I could travel to the EU (or just buy an EU iPhone), install a 3rd party App Store + apps, then happily use a non-Appstore iPhone outside the EU. I don't particularly think this "infection" a big risk, but Apple sure seems to.
friend_and_foe 3y ago
Apple has been known to abuse their users like this for over a decade. Still somehow they're huge, they have a loyal fanbase of people that make excuses for it to justify their conspicuous consumption. They know it, so they do what they want.
smnrchrds 3y ago
> I don't understand why they are doing this Billions and billions of dollars, that's why.
safety1st 3y ago
I think you have the right take, because right now exactly zero people are smuggling iPhones out of the EU to use 3rd party app stores. These non-existent smugglings are costing Apple $0 So this is just a PR fiasco and a way for Apple to look like a comic book villain that spites both customers and governments, at no gain to itself. If this thing Apple execs apparently fear more than the Devil himself were to actually happen then OK do the calculus and ban what you think you need to ban. But doing it now is just silly. Apple used to be a company that was famously good at managing its image, no more it seems. A slow decline into incompetency accompanied by a relentless focus on profit maximization is a classic sign that a company has obtained illegal monopoly rents in one form or another and needs to be brought to justice
fingerlocks 3y ago
I think this is more about reducing support costs than extracting every transaction fee. A major benefit of a walled garden is that you can maintain a controlled system with largely predictable expectations of what problems users will encounter and the costs of providing support. Say what you want about Apple’s products, but their support is top tier and a major selling point for many consumers. It’s also very expensive to provide. Relaxing AppStore restrictions reduces both security and expected behavior the phone. People here will argue otherwise, but it is a fact. Alternative web browsers require the ability to make the most dangerous, security compromising system call that can be done by a normal app. Things will inevitably go wrong in ways that Apple cannot control, and users will seek the support they expect. Unfortunately now Apple is at the mercy of Google or whomever to release their own patches while Apple fronts the support costs for problems they didn’t create. Losing control of the system and being unable to provide the expected level of customer satisfaction is more damaging to the brand than otherwise. Outside of tech circles, nobody cares about alternative app stores or which JIT compiler is running when they browse the web

wlesieutre 3y ago

Who needs reputation when you can have a 30% cut of every microtransaction game instead?

jncfhnb 3y ago

It can’t possibly hurt more than what they gain from racketeering

r00fus 3y ago

This is to prevent the EU DMA rules (and 3rd party EU app stores) from infecting their other markets. The idea being, I could travel to the EU (or just buy an EU iPhone), install a 3rd party App Store + apps, then happily use a non-Appstore iPhone outside the EU. I don't particularly think this "infection" a big risk, but Apple sure seems to.

friend_and_foe 3y ago

Apple has been known to abuse their users like this for over a decade. Still somehow they're huge, they have a loyal fanbase of people that make excuses for it to justify their conspicuous consumption. They know it, so they do what they want.

smnrchrds 3y ago

> I don't understand why they are doing this Billions and billions of dollars, that's why.

safety1st 3y ago

I think you have the right take, because right now exactly zero people are smuggling iPhones out of the EU to use 3rd party app stores. These non-existent smugglings are costing Apple $0 So this is just a PR fiasco and a way for Apple to look like a comic book villain that spites both customers and governments, at no gain to itself. If this thing Apple execs apparently fear more than the Devil himself were to actually happen then OK do the calculus and ban what you think you need to ban. But doing it now is just silly. Apple used to be a company that was famously good at managing its image, no more it seems. A slow decline into incompetency accompanied by a relentless focus on profit maximization is a classic sign that a company has obtained illegal monopoly rents in one form or another and needs to be brought to justice

fingerlocks 3y ago

I think this is more about reducing support costs than extracting every transaction fee. A major benefit of a walled garden is that you can maintain a controlled system with largely predictable expectations of what problems users will encounter and the costs of providing support. Say what you want about Apple’s products, but their support is top tier and a major selling point for many consumers. It’s also very expensive to provide. Relaxing AppStore restrictions reduces both security and expected behavior the phone. People here will argue otherwise, but it is a fact. Alternative web browsers require the ability to make the most dangerous, security compromising system call that can be done by a normal app. Things will inevitably go wrong in ways that Apple cannot control, and users will seek the support they expect. Unfortunately now Apple is at the mercy of Google or whomever to release their own patches while Apple fronts the support costs for problems they didn’t create. Losing control of the system and being unable to provide the expected level of customer satisfaction is more damaging to the brand than otherwise. Outside of tech circles, nobody cares about alternative app stores or which JIT compiler is running when they browse the web