Yeah - imagine how much more it sucks if you’re forced to use a certain store for all of your apps.
What are you talking about?
Just use don’t use that app, if you’re unhappy with providing biometric readings?!
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Epic Games Plans for Alternative App Marketplace in EU as Apple Reinstates Developer Account
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Just use don’t use that app, if you’re unhappy with providing biometric readings?!
Well; no. By charging the core technology fee to developers, they admit the developers still are using Apple’s technology, so this is now part of apple’s ecosystem.
I barely trust Apple with my data. I will never trust some shoddy corps like Epic to provide apps that I would have to install on my device in case when some app publisher decides to publish only on 3rd party store (because they need to use hidden API that Apple prohibits).
Also, I won’t be protected from naïve users installing apps from shady app stores. How that might affect me? Well, their compromised app version will still communicate with the version installed on my device, which makes my device open for an attack without me even realising it. You might say, this might happen even using the apps from Apple App Store, and you would be right. But Apple at least is forced to do the best they can to protect users because they have a lot more at stake than some shoddy App Store being run by some scammers like epic.
I would love to have an ability on my device to block and not see any communication from devices running apps from 3rd party app stores
No, we need them around. Where else are we going to get so many free games?
Just a side-bar to the complexity of Apple’s App Store.
I had an old app I made for demonstration purposes on 2017 and finally got around to getting it out there. Android was easy if you are an organization (if not its a pain to be a dev there now). Just a one time fee of 25 bucks and you are good to go.
Apple charges you 100 bucks a year and huge fees on free apps if they get over a million downloads or so. Anyway I run two not-for-profits so I applied that way to avoid the fees. Getting my mortgage for the first time was easier that dealing with Apple! You had to be on Dun and Bradstreet. Then you had to submit your passport and drivers licence to validate yourself. Then all the documentation of the not for profit. Then more documentation of the not for profit. Then finally, a phone call to speak with Apple representatives directly.
Apple gets cudos for doing business in the States instead of farming it out to India. Everything is like business hours central time. They called me from Texas even though they claim they are based in California - what up with that? Anyway, after three weeks I got my “fee free” dev account and the representative on the phone said congrats - and it did feel like winning the lottery after all that hassle.
Now - when you get the account the terms of service must be well over 200 pages of legal terminology. Just out of curiosity I tried to scroll to the end - and it would not end!
Anyway that was my experience with Apple and becoming a dev…. I can see why the whole Epic stuff goes on forever!
I had an old app I made for demonstration purposes on 2017 and finally got around to getting it out there. Android was easy if you are an organization (if not its a pain to be a dev there now). Just a one time fee of 25 bucks and you are good to go.
Apple charges you 100 bucks a year and huge fees on free apps if they get over a million downloads or so. Anyway I run two not-for-profits so I applied that way to avoid the fees. Getting my mortgage for the first time was easier that dealing with Apple! You had to be on Dun and Bradstreet. Then you had to submit your passport and drivers licence to validate yourself. Then all the documentation of the not for profit. Then more documentation of the not for profit. Then finally, a phone call to speak with Apple representatives directly.
Apple gets cudos for doing business in the States instead of farming it out to India. Everything is like business hours central time. They called me from Texas even though they claim they are based in California - what up with that? Anyway, after three weeks I got my “fee free” dev account and the representative on the phone said congrats - and it did feel like winning the lottery after all that hassle.
Now - when you get the account the terms of service must be well over 200 pages of legal terminology. Just out of curiosity I tried to scroll to the end - and it would not end!
Anyway that was my experience with Apple and becoming a dev…. I can see why the whole Epic stuff goes on forever!
Again, someone whose argument depends on the alternative app stores being “shoddy” and run by “scammers,” as if there is no other legitimate company that could run a store selling digital goods competently and without scamming people. 🙄
So if was to demo an app, and you spent $25 on an Android release why not just sit back and go with that to show people it worked on a phone?
To say you had to jump through so many hoops with Apple seems like a waste of your time.
Perhaps if you had tested it and received a good response just pay the $99 and roll it out properly?
That's hardly a killer fee even for something non profit.
This post feels like it should have started with "once upon a time..." as it was all fantasy story and no facts.
You've already crafted the "happy ever after" ending.
they could play it before when Epic played by the rules.
isnt it odd that a game dev who for a living writes code based on rules in an artificial closed environment cant seem to do the same on the platform they run it on?
You know that people have been buying software for Macs outside of (and well before the existence of) Apple’s Mac App Store? Why has that worked just fine? Have there been numerous examples on Macs of the situation that you describe? Why not?
You sound to me like Chicken Little, but there is no reason to believe that the sky is falling.
So players of Fortnite who won't buy Fortbux or whatever will be subsidised by players who do buy the bux, the .50 euro technology fee I mean?
It’s 99 bucks a year just keep it in there. I could do it for free so I took that route but getting there was painful….So if was to demo an app, and you spent $25 on an Android release why not just sit back and go with that to show people it worked on a phone?
To say you had to jump through so many hoops with Apple seems like a waste of your time.
Perhaps if you had tested it and received a good response just pay the $99 and roll it out properly?
That's hardly a killer fee even for something non profit.
It will be interesting to see how Apple implement the EU version...
will changing your Settings > Region & Language > Region to something nonEU allow you to install the version everyone else in the world is using and avoid the EU directive?
and will those so desperately seeking an open slather change Region to any EU country and get access to alt app stores?
Will the EU version be the last pushed out the door for EU users?
If it meets the DMA demands could Apple choose to leave it there and only actively work on rest-of-the-world iOS 18+?
Did the EU DMA say Apple have to offer feature parity going forward?
will changing your Settings > Region & Language > Region to something nonEU allow you to install the version everyone else in the world is using and avoid the EU directive?
and will those so desperately seeking an open slather change Region to any EU country and get access to alt app stores?
Will the EU version be the last pushed out the door for EU users?
If it meets the DMA demands could Apple choose to leave it there and only actively work on rest-of-the-world iOS 18+?
Did the EU DMA say Apple have to offer feature parity going forward?
so you jumped the hoops to get it free on Apple but paid $25 for Android?
this isnt about openness at all. it's about fee charged...
given you got it up there for free, let us know what app it is so we can have a look.
every app is going to take time. if you worked for free, then good on you but if you were paid, $99 still isnt expensive if this app provides worthwhile functionality. like all non-profits, get someone to sponsor it.
A lot of Android phones don't get bricked, including mine and I've installed 3rd party apps,.
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Enough do, though.
Android malware scam victims lost more than S$10 million in first half of 2023: Police
Over 750 cases of Android malware-related scams were reported in the first half of 2023, including 11 cases involving the unauthorised withdrawal of Central Provident Fund savings.
Imagine that. A police advisory specifically calling out android.
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First of all: Nothing changes in the EU, since Apple reserves the right to review apps.
Apps downloaded from other stores don’t “need to” to use hidden APIs.
Also, Apple can just reject apps that use hidden APIs - and can technically restrict access to hidden APIs.
🤣🤣🤣 Are you being serious. Compromised apps (that have been reviewed by Apple, even sold through third-party store in the EU) as attack vectors against you?
That’s FUD - and not substantiated as a relevant danger by other operating systems that allow installation of unreviewed/unsigned apps.
Anyone that would attack you can create their own tool to do it. They don’t even need the original app to do so. All you need to understand is the communication protocol.
Disable all internet communication and live in a cave that blocks radio waves - problem solved.
What's that? Are you advocating for more educated buyers?
Corporate America dies not want that; they want mindless consumers.The walled garden ensures only quality apps are available, and prevents trash and adware clogging up the App Store. We know that Apple is the largest resource of quality games - without any such trash. Apple arcade, with its tens of titles, is not a tactit admission that the rest of the App Store is full of adware garbage.
There is no niche left for Epic to really fill here!
There is no niche left for Epic to really fill here!
“Forced” to do the best they can? 😆
Because if Apple do a shoddy job on reviewing apps…
a) …you go buy your apps elsewhere?
Oh wait… you can’t, when Apple enforces a monopoly on that! 🙀
b) …you immediately fork out a 1000 Dollars and switch to a more secure smartphone and OS?
Oh wait… can’t switch to Android, cause that’s “even worse” in not even requiring a store or review for installation of apps. 😩
👉 When was a monopoly ever forced to do the best they can?
Having a monopoly is the number one reason why one is not forced to do the best they can. Especially when said monopolist can set the terms and rules as they please, without government oversight.
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What monopoly are you referring to? Any citation for any legal finding?
A bit of a silly argument
Can you guarantee the above 100%. I don't know if it's true or not, but on windows, it's possible that hardware can be blown out by bad applications behaving badly.