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Devil's advocate: what is the typical markup at retail stores? Who cares? We're not selling boxed software. Let me give you a better question: how much would i
by mikestew 2y ago
Devil's advocate: what is the typical markup at retail stores?
Who cares? We're not selling boxed software. Let me give you a better question: how much would it cost to host a web site and give a payment processor their cut? I can answer that, because I've done it for Pocket PC/WinMobile apps: 7% to FastSpring, or whoever, for payment processing and then web site hosting for, what, a few hundred a year?
30% is friggin' ridiculous. Discovery is non-existent on Apple's App Store, so we are paying for...what? Overpriced payment processing, and some minimal online storage? I don't give a shit that Apple provided a "platform", as Microsoft isn't charging for me to have the privilege of dropping a binary on a Windows box. And for Apple to then turn around and demand a cut every time money changes hands, whether Apple had anything to do with it or not, is just icing on that anti-competitive cake.
- anonymars 2y agoThe point is it's a frame of reference. The claim is that 30% is ridiculous. Why? Based on other comments in the discussion, it sounds in the same ballpark to other online stores, ones without Apple's anticompetitive pressure. If that's the case, it sounds like a very lucrative market, so competition should bring that number down if it's so profitable. Again, this is a separate question from Apple's anticompetitive behavior, it's solely about whether a 30% cut is itself reasonable or outrageous.
- anonymars 2y agoI thought of a frame of reference: ebay. All told, it looks like I pay 15% to ebay when selling something. So Apple charges 2x as much (I would say the value provided is comparable)