Fortnite vs Apple : Tim Cook has lost the moral high ground

[sekker]

And Apple’s attorneys are trying to rewrite history.

https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/21/21377...ecial-deal

I know iOS users like the walled garden. But independent gardeners, not so much.

[macphanatic]

No one is forced to use iOS products or develop for them.

[Sarcany]

Neither party ever had the moral high-ground.

This is a dumb battle to take sides on. Epic is not the good guy and never has been. They abuse their market power more than Apple does. Apple's store policies are not applied fairly. Both sides would be highly regulated and subject to antitrust action in a society that had substantive values.

[d4]

Some people love condos with HOAs. Some people hate them.

The HOA rules are all spelled out and upfront. Completely transparent. Everyone living there abides by them. Tenant lives in a condo and then 5 years later starts whining about the rules. Tenant then lawyers up to try and find a loophole. And then complain how the HOA is a monopoly. And then sue the HOA because you can't have it your way.

[Sarcany]

d4 wrote:
Some people love condos with HOAs. Some people hate them.

The HOA rules are all spelled out and upfront. Completely transparent. Everyone living there abides by them. Tenant lives in a condo and then 5 years later starts whining about the rules. Tenant then lawyers up to try and find a loophole. And then complain how the HOA is a monopoly. And then sue the HOA because you can't have it your way.

The HOA bends the rules for their buddies.

[freeradical]

Who controls the escalation here?

;-)

[sekker]

Sarcany wrote:
[quote=d4]
Some people love condos with HOAs. Some people hate them.

The HOA rules are all spelled out and upfront. Completely transparent. Everyone living there abides by them. Tenant lives in a condo and then 5 years later starts whining about the rules. Tenant then lawyers up to try and find a loophole. And then complain how the HOA is a monopoly. And then sue the HOA because you can't have it your way.

The HOA bends the rules for their buddies.
Powerful buddies like Amazon.

[sekker]

Sarcany wrote:
Both sides would be highly regulated and subject to antitrust action in a society that had substantive values.

I agree that Fortnite is a mess. But the statements by Apple lawyers is astounding to me.

However, I believe it is ridiculous that for me to read a book purchased from the Amazon store on my iOS device that I would have to pay Apple 30% of that sale.

And for those that say the developers knew what the rules were and just changed their mind, BS. Apple makes changes to rules ALL THE TIME. Here's just one example and on the FREE app, wordpress.

https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/21/21396...date-store

[M A V I C]

Which quotes from Apple do you have a problem with? To me, Apple's position makes sense, and it's been this way for a long, long time.

Epic has banned thousands of people for not following its rules. I don't understand why they think they can break the rules and not suffer a similar fate.

[sekker]

M A V I C wrote:
Which quotes from Apple do you have a problem with? To me, Apple's position makes sense, and it's been this way for a long, long time.

Epic has banned thousands of people for not following its rules. I don't understand why they think they can break the rules and not suffer a similar fate.

Epic did not break good faith in the negotiations by asking for the same deal Amazon received; further, they asked Apple whether the same counter offer they were making could be offered across the board to other developers.

Apple deserves the financial windfall it has earned by making an amazing ecosystem. But if you are a developer, being locked out of half of the mobile market is like making a car and only being allowed on half the roads or less - and toll roads to boot.

For me, the fundamental flaw in Apple's argument is Amazon. If Apple had stuck to their guns and demanded the same deal from Amazon or kicked them off, then Apple would have the moral ground. But they are making special deals.

I think this anti-trust case is even more important than Carter vs AT&T, which opened up phone lines to innovation (and to things like the FAX machine and home internet). There are plenty of types of software Apple blocks that have nothing to do with security and everything to do with their bottom line. Will be interesting to see where this goes.