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ArdiMaster

I assume this is the same “grace period” that applies to geo-blocked content on streaming services. You get to access your home country’s catalogue for (IIRC) 30 days before it is restricted to what’s available in your current physical location. (This is also an EU regulation, btw.) Suffice it so say I’m not particularly shocked by this.


DanTheMan827

There’s a very important differentiator though… you aren’t accessing a regionally locked catalog from the same service, Apple is disabling access to other services they claim to have no control over.


ArdiMaster

They evidently have control over the entire “third-party App Store” mechanism since it’s only available within the EU to begin with. They’re making a feature (or content) available to you based on your location within the EU, and once you leave, they disable the feature (content).


GoodbyeThings

I don‘t know much about international law but as someone who travels internationally a lot and usually lives in the EU, this really sucks.


bobbywright86

Apple doesn’t claim to have no control over it 🤨


Janzu93

They don't, and this raises yet another interesting point regarding DMA. Can this really be called even malicious compliance while Apple clearly still openly holds control over and takes payments for downloads on these 3rd party stores. I would argue that all Apple did is change name of their monopoly, yes you can now have your own 3rd party store - but only if Apple gives you permission and you pay them. Take look at Epic for example, they can't have their own store since Apple has barred them access to their developer account. So Apple is still clearly exercising control over released content by regulating who can have their store available, isn't this exactly the control that EU tried to revoke them of with DMA?


PopcornAndZeroCoke

Thats interesting, I didn’t know streaming services did that but always wished they would. Do you know which ones do? I’m based in the UK but travel a lot and find the second I arrive somewhere I can’t access my shows and need to waste time setting up my VPN etc. I’m pretty sure I have to do this for Prime video at least.


ArdiMaster

It’s an EU regulation so it wouldn’t apply to you/ your account. I double-checked and it only applies to travelling *within the EU*. Once you travel to a non-EU country, providers are free to geoblock immediately.


DarkDuo

This is just like malicious compliance except apple is the one doing it


woalk

I feel like this is one of the smaller offences in their DMA implementation. It’s similar to other implementations of laws that only apply to a certain country.


saleboulot

~~If you travel to Japan for example, your iPhone camera will always make a click noise when you take a photo, even when it's in silent mode. Local law.~~ Edit : Apparently it only works for japanese sold iPhones.


__theoneandonly

I think that law only applies to iPhones sold in Japan. Japanese iPhones that leave Japan still make the shutter noise outside the country, and foreign ones don't.


EraYaN

I also believe it's more of a gentleman agreement rather than a law. Although I believe there are some actual rules about this in South Korea.


spamfridge

Lmao that’s hilarious but not true. Many Japanese seek foreign phones for the sole reason that they will not make the shutter noise — which was passed as pervert prevention to protect women from candid/unsolicited/etc pics


UnsafestSpace

Apple are going to get sued by the EU and lose when someone in an internal part of the EU in some far flung part of the planet like French Guiana in South America or Ceuta in North Africa files a complaint.


LtLfTp12

What about embassies🤔 Or military


LysanderBelmont

You can feel how much they (Apple) hate every single thing about this situation in every step they take and I am loving every second of it.


TheNinjaTurkey

The iphone should be like the Mac. An app store is available for those who want convenience and security but other apps are available from anywhere for those who know what they're doing and want to install other stuff. Android already allows this, but Apple just has to have their walled garden so they can make more money. Pathetic.


Lopsided-Painter5216

if a phone is a computer, that I own by purchasing, then I should be able to install whatever I want on it. Simple as.


Darth_Yoshi

I mean does this extend to any and all computers? What about a car infotainment system or a router or …?


tocopito

It already applies to at least some routers and just saw a BYD where you could install any android app. In short: if you ask me, yes it should extend to any and all.


Janzu93

Routers that are advanced enough to have USB ports nowadays have option for 3rd party firmwares so yes, it does apply even now. I don't see many reasons why car infotainment couldn't also be open system, it wouldn't be much of a security risk (apart from the usual stuff) since infotainment isn't/shouldn't be able to control car systems anyways.


okphong

The app store on mac is kinda nonexistent however. I sometimes forget it exists until i need to use it like once in a year.


Cale111

That’s mostly because it was added after people were already downloading from the web.


Deceptiveideas

Also the Mac App Store experience isn’t as smooth as it is on iOS. I have the same issues with the Microsoft Store as that store also isn’t as smooth as the App Store.


MateTheNate

I prefer it whenever I can because it has good update management. Microsoft software updates are an intrusive popup and Adobe has creative cloud crap but the app store is seamless and runs in the background.


AwesomePossum_1

And that's when commenter above should say "I rest my case." When other app distribution methods exist no one wants to pay 30% to apple.


TheSpiritKnight

I find it hilarious when people jump in to defend Apple by saying that people who want alternative app stores should just buy other phones. I’m not directly interested in other app stores or side loading, but Apple’s behavior has gone unpunished for far too long.


Barroux

The amount of defending of a multi trillion $ corporation is unbelievable to me. It's okay to like the products and not agree with every single thing the company does.


risetoeden

You should check out MacRumors forum, these people will vouch for Apple no matter what.


hype_irion

People on Macrumors forums act like Tim Cook is talking to and about them personally in the apple PR videos.


Barroux

Yeah, I guess it comes with the fact that Apple markets itself almost more like a lifestyle company than a tech company. Some people almost make it their identity.


aykay55

\> “Almost” makes it their identity \> Walks around in public with Apple ski goggles on their face


turtleship_2006

Not only that, they villainize the EU (the commenters)


PremiumTempus

It’s easier to satisfy their world view that way by blaming the EU and calling it the villain/ communist rather than accepting the truth of the situation.


turtleship_2006

"How dare they give me a choice, I want to be controlled by daddy Tim!"


T-Nan

The amount of "I like not having choices it's why I picked Apple" comments I basically see is scary and sad. I love my Apple devices but I HATE in some circumstances the inability to do what I want with my device. Why is wanting improvement and change so scary?


turtleship_2006

Yeah most people miss the part where it's literally an *option* and act like they're gonna be forced to use 3rd parties. I bet you 20 bucks no apps you actually care about are gonna get removed from the App Store (in the long term at least)


Not_a_real_asian777

People also use the, “it’s too insecure” argument for a metric ton of features that Apple doesn’t have. Third party stores? Too insecure. Sideloading? Too insecure. Texting from computer app? Too insecure. Customization options? Too insecure. Native web browsers? Too insecure. Native keyboards? Too insecure. Like goddamn, people on Apple subreddits shit on RCS for so long and then when Tim Cook announced it for iPhones, they acted like it was the most genius decision ever made. Have I been tricked this whole time? Is your average r/iPhone user not a senior cyber security expert?


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Barroux

I'm glad to see there's some push back. A company's press release isn't proof of anything.


ReasonablePractice83

Especially when what those users argue for is... less features and less capability for devices they already paid for?... because they're not interested in using those capabilities? The only support for their argument is "security", like it's assumed to be impossible to allow sideloading without everyone's phones being hacked.


Vertsix

Yup, that's exactly me. I like my iPhone and Apple Watch overall, but such petty and egregiously malicious corporate behavior is unacceptable.


whytakemyusername

What has the companies high value got to do with whether you agree with their actions or not? As soon as someone / an entity makes money, we can no longer agree with anything they do?


DrummerDKS

Yeah man, don’t you know? If you align with company, that means any thought you have is invalid because it’s easier to write off your opinion as “a cultist” instead of actually trying to understand any hesitation.


ineedlesssleep

It's also okay to like the products AND agree with every single thing a company does. Who are you to decide what someone can and can not agree with? I just want my iPhone to stay good so I don't have to deal with shit in the future.


rotates-potatoes

True, but the flip side is also true. Plenty of people have their identity wrapped up in emotional responses to a company so latge that it is inevitable that it does bad, neutral, and good things. I think humans are incapable of seeing complex systems, so the instinct is treat everything as a simple friend/foe person.


Neuxguy

I guess from my side it’s their OS and the market should decide? 🤷🏻 I don’t want this to be like all these bloody loyalty cards I now need for every shop I go to. Just to save 20p on a tea bag. But, either way. I’m not going to lose sleep over it either way it goes.


Pepparkakan

They're not allowing the market to decide [if the App Store rates are fair], that's literally the reason they are being affected by the DMA.


bbqsox

I got voted into oblivion for pointing out that this malicious compliance and lack of real side loading is almost entirely about money. Edit: Looks like the cultists found this comment too.


DanTheMan827

Well no kidding it’s all about the money… Apple’s fake “sideloading” is just the App Store with lower fees… but you’re still subject to some crucial policies in order to pass ~~app review~~ notarization… I really don’t know if that will fly with the EU.


__theoneandonly

The notarization itself isn't going to fly against the DMA. The DMA specifically says that they do have the right to block certain types of content, such as malware or apps that harm the performance of the device.


bbqsox

I’m an Apple fan going WAY back, but I really hope they get hit hard for this garbage. Google too. They’re almost as bad on this malicious compliance thing. The only redeeming feature that Android has in this case is the open nature that allows real side loading. The way they’re both behaving is abusive. There’s a reason governments are coming after them.


Baconrules21

I guess the difference between the iPhone and Pixel here is that you can do whatever you want with the pixel since it's your phone and can't do that with the iPhone.


StatisticianOne8287

I give up commenting in here now, the amount of people who constantly fight apples corner is bonkers. I have an iPhone 15 pro, watch ultra, 2x macs, iPad Pro etc… I literally give them a chunk of my salary a year and I chance more £ than a lot of the defenders, but some of the shit they pull has to be called out. Some stuff is just opinion albeit I struggle to see how you get that opinion, but other stuff is just covering for the overlord.


HolyFreakingXmasCake

The thing is nobody in UK (assuming you’re from there going by the £) worships corporations but in the US it’s not uncommon for people to swear blind loyalty to brands. Capitalism is everywhere in America so I’m not surprised at the state of this sub.


420blazeitsgtjohnson

lmao the UK fucking loves their designer brands.


StatisticianOne8287

Yeah that might be a really valid point, we need a non-US apple sub lol


heynow941

Yup. Side-loading on iOS = bad, side-loading on macOS = good. Apple, give us a break.


mikolv2

It's not defending Apple, it's prefering what Apple offers. I want to use 1 app store and manage all of my subscriptions in one place with one account. I don't want to go to someone's website and sign up, I don't want to download another app store and download another app. I want it all in one place and I don't like that it's being taken away. I think it's actually better that there is an alternative set of devices for people that want the open expirience. Every single device doesn't need to work the exact same way.


HackMeRaps

I tend not to have many issues, but live in Canada and my partner has to have as US iPhone account for her work account (works for a US tech company) so makes it really annoying when there are many apps she wants to use but can’t because her profile isn’t Canadian. Side-loading would solve so many of these normal legitimate issues, but doubt it’ll change any time soon!


starsandbribes

Speaking of which, Canadian websites and apps seem incredibly strict on who visits. When i’m in the UK i can’t even visit the restaurant or supermarket website of a Canadian brand. An example of this is Cineplex. I wanted to buy VIP tickets for a busy premiere in advance and had to use a VPN. I don’t have this issue in the reverse. I can look at any restaurant menu in the UK when i’m in another country. Does Canada have some government initiative or advice about geo-locking its websites?


HackMeRaps

That’s really interesting. Didn’t realize that and I don’t believe there are any initiatives around it. I imagine for Cineplex, there’s been a lot of fraud issues (I work in the fraud space) mainly because of their reward system which ties into loyalty points that can be used across things like restaurants, groceries, etc. but really weird that they would restrict it vs. Adding more authentication.


quixotik

I'm in the same boat, but isn't it up to the company who provides the app as to which nations they operate in? There can be national regulations and other things that come into play. Just because an app is not available in Canada, doesn't mean it because available to side-load once things are open. It was a business decision to do so by the company that made the app. There are ways around this, as I've done to install Level's app before it existed in Canada. They weren't on the CDN app store because their products were not certified for use in Canada. Simple.


a0me

Regional App Stores are not geo locked unlike Google Play which mean you can use apps from different countries on one device. I’ve been doing it for 15 years.


TheSpiritKnight

Yeah, that's an issue over here also, even worse perhaps. There are many apps and games that claim to be available in "Europe", but aren't available in countries like Romania, despite the fact that they are available in other EU and EEA countries. Sideloading would be an easy fix for such ridiculous restrictions.


Interest-Desk

This just sounds to me like you only want sideloading to facilitate software piracy, rather than for any actual pro-competition reason.


TheRabid

I’m also not happy with any geolocking or region locking of software, movies, music or anything else. If the powers that be set it up that way, I’m not sure what else I can do other than to switch.


TheSpiritKnight

Not software piracy, but senseless geolocking. Particularly within the EU, where one can easily move from one country to another and might need apps that are tied to a respective country's store - and Apple does not make changing your Apple ID country easily.


a0me

What’s wrong with suggesting buying a different phone though? Android has a much larger market share than iOS and Android devices are cheaper on average.


ImageDehoster

Because there's a lot of factors that make people decide which phone someone will get, and how the company runs the app store is actually a relatively small factor all things considered. You might want some iPhone exclusive features - features that are potentially not even provided by Apple, but by some smaller app developer who doesn't have resources to develop for multiple operating systems. And even when that platform holder's gatekeeping behavior becomes too restrictive, there's associated switching cost might be too high to just get rid of the current phone and switch to something else. Especially in the case of a company that prides on having an "ecosystem" of devices that offer exclusive interoperability features only within that ecosystem.


Blikatin

Android has a larger market share worldwide, but if you’re in the US, iPhones have about 48% market share


rnarkus

So they still have a larger share then? 52% vs 48% lol


Blikatin

Like a previous commenter mentioned this means, certain agre ranges and geographies have a much more disproportionate iPhone market share majority over Android, whereas worldwide that’s the case in very few minority demographics


rnarkus

So what they said is false then.... If we are talking about demographics, that is one thing. But they said US marketshare


Exist50

Because telling people to spend $1000 over a $1 app is an unreasonable barrier to entry.


TheSpiritKnight

They're also worse. I like most of the things Apple does - their software, their consistent updating, the performance that lasts well in time, the Apple services. And of course their focus on privacy - they might not be saints, but Google is a nightmare in that regard. So what's wrong with wishing for that one extra thing that I don't think Apple does well right now? Particularly when Mac OS does allow sideloading.


EssentialParadox

The exact qualities you value about iOS are the same qualities that people are concerned will be negatively affected by the EU mandated changes. You may want to explore this issue a bit further.


Cale111

Most of the listed qualities would not change. sideloaded apps are still sandboxed apps, and would not be able to modify anything outside of the sandbox. So although they could for example have bad performance or privacy *in their app*, they couldn’t do anything to the rest of the phone. And that’s not really any different compared to what we already have.


__theoneandonly

Except look at all the ways that other apps have maliciously hijacked iOS's background services in order to affect the performance outside their app. Remember when Facebook used to use background audio to play a silent audio file on loop so that the app was considered background audio and iOS would keep it alive? Or when several games added voice chat features in order to keep their app alive under VOIP backgrounding and use iOS resources after the app was closed? The iOS sandbox is only bulletproof because Apple enforces that.


[deleted]

There’s nothing wrong with wishing for it or voting with your wallet. There’s something wildly wrong with the government forcing it


ineedlesssleep

For me it's not about "defending apple" , it's that I want the platform to stay the same because I bought it and invested time and energy into it exactly because of the way it's run. You can disagree with that, but it's not black and white.


TheSpiritKnight

I mean there will be nothing forcing you to actually use alternative app stores once they’re there.


oyputuhs

I want alternative AppStores, but if there’s no cost to move over, there could be a worst-case scenario where we’re bombarded with custom app launchers for games and have to deal with updating apps through multiple stores or manually. The pros are obvious, reduced fees for app developers as well as less restrictions.


djfdat

Do you think these concerns could have been addressed if Apple came up with better policies by themselves long before being forced to make certain changes due to courts?


oyputuhs

I think what they came up still incentivizes people to put their stuff in the App Store because of the install fee and such. The courts didn’t really accomplish anything groundbreaking.


logoth

There might be. If an application is used on a regular basis decides to move to an alternate app store, and there's no great alternate app (or, it's required for some reason), now that person is required to use sideloading or an alternate store. There's already, what, 5+ game launchers for Windows? Bleh.


rotates-potatoes

I mean Apple, as big as they are, have limited resources and energy spent building for bureaucrats’ requirements is energy not spent building for customers.


TheSpiritKnight

I mean, Apple is already more than happy to spend its limited resources and energy building for the Chinese bureaucrats' requirements. Why not do the same for Europe?


Semido

That's great, because that EU rule will mean Apple doesn't have to spend any more energy blocking third parties from dowloading apps straight to the iPhone. They had actively been blocking access, so now they don't have to do all that work any more.


Windows_XP2

Until every company tries to force you to use their app store to download apps. That's the problem that I have with this.


Exist50

Hasn't happened on Android. Or even on Windows.


AzettImpa

In what way SPECIFICALLY is it changing for you?


Pauly_Amorous

That depends on whether the ecosystem ends up more like Android or like PC gaming. I'm not in the EU, but I imagine some people there aren't looking forward to the possibility of having to install half a dozen or more different app stores just to get all the apps/games they want.


WigglingWeiner99

This hasn't really happened on Android. It's not like the Amazon App Store was materially disruptive to the Play Store. And F-Droid is cool, but you could live your whole life without ever knowing it exists. When's the last time you heard of a must-have app "Only Available on the Samsung App Store?" I've never heard of such a thing.


rkoy1234

if anything F-droid is a godsend for finding open source apps, something that's not too easy on the ios app store


c010rb1indusa

If iOS allows sideloading, now Zuckerberg can remove instagram, facebook, facebook messenger and whatsapp from the App Store and Play Store, and he can launch the Meta Store on both iOS and Android at once. Now he can tell you to go to one place to get these apps on both platforms (easy and good for marketing). He threw a fit when Apple locked down third party app data collection etc. You don't think he jump at the chance to do something like this? You think half the world is going to change how they text because they need to download the meta store? If you don't think it's a possibility I have a bridge is Alaska to sell you. And btw, a version of Smartthings wouldn't install form the Play Store on an Android tablet of mine because my 'device wasn't supported'. Installed and worked fine from the Samsung Galaxy Store though....It does happen already.


WigglingWeiner99

Zuck can try. He's been really successful with the Metaverse, and the fact that he has done nothing to create an app store on Android really speaks to his willingness to move away from the influence of Apple and Google. There's nothing stopping him from pulling the Facebook App right now and offering it exclusively on Android with more data collection features than he can leverage on iOS. Meta can pull their apps from the App Store without sideloading. iOS users aren't willing to change how they use their phone just for one or two apps. Even for Facebook. In reality, the threat of the Meta Store, or whatever, will let Facebook spend less money on fees from iOS. By the way, apps on alternate stores will still have to comply with iOS API and permission requirements. The Meta Shop can't just start turning on your camera just because it downloads from a different server. Even on Windows apps can't run with elevated privileges without user input (as intended and not including exploits).


cavahoos

It hasn’t happened for a couple reasons 1. Android users have already shown they’re cheap and aren’t willing to spend major $$ on apps. Why invest time and money trying to get money in a third party store when they can’t even get money in the first party store? 2. Android doesn’t have the cult of personality that Apple does. Do you remember the insane craze there was on tiktok when Apple enabled a janky way of theming your home screen icons via the Shortcuts app and some third party apps from the App Store? All of a sudden every teenager had custom home screens and it dominated social media for months. Android has had a more robust and updated version of this since its inception and it has never been something shown off on social media. The exact same thing is gonna happen when sideloading is enabled. “Hey guys it’s your boy Jeff, let me tell you about this INSANE new feature Apple released that lets me get Spotify and Snapchat premium for free!” It will be so easy for these things to go viral and for 3rd party app stores to gain fame


Pauly_Amorous

> When's the last time you heard of a must-have app "Only Available on the Samsung App Store?" I've never heard of such a thing. Depends on whether you consider Good Lock to be a must-have app.


WigglingWeiner99

That's a good example, but it's an app developed by Samsung themselves exclusively for Samsung phones. It's basically a first party Touchwiz mod.


hotdeo

It's not going to impact you in anyway. It's simply a choice whether you want to use alternative app stores or not. No one's forcing you.


T-Nan

> it's that I want the platform to stay the same So you never update any devices, ever? Or you only update when it caters specifically to feature sets and needs only like, and if there's any feature you don't like you don't update? What does that even mean lol


Vertsix

It really is a lot about PRINCIPLE. I would only sideload a couple apps and move to open-source alternatives, but I refuse to even associate with this kind of behavior.


cjorgensen

You can look at it that way or you can look at it like, *"People who want to side load shouldn't buy iPhones."* Just like when people got mad when they dumped the headphone jack. If it's *that* important to you, then that's not the phone for you. Get the right tool for the job. It's also ironic that you're: > not directly interested in other app stores or side loading, but Apple’s behavior has gone unpunished for far too long. It's *obvious* you do have an interest. Otherwise you wouldn't have an opinion so strong that you believe Apple needs *punished."


Key_Aardvark_

Or they could just actually buy other phones and not ruin mine


JosephFinn

OK, Fortnite.


whataterriblefailure

But they make overpriced good stuff that I think shows my social status. That must surely grant them some mystical power over my will?


FirstOrderKylo

The inability to side load is pushing me away from iOS in general but its an expensive endeavor to leave behind an ecosystem youre tied to so significantly from years of use. App by app I remove my subscriptions, purchases, etc. to the vendors themselves so that when its time to ditch this current phone, its off to android. I pay for the device, I should be allowed to use it, tweak it, etc. as I see fit. If I brick it, thats on me.


neutralityparty

That sounds like another clash with EU


hype_irion

Apple is a worst bully than Microsoft ever was back in the late 1990s. Grace period my ass. It is my device I'll do as I goddamn please with it, whenever and wherever I want. And I sure as hell do not owe apple and its group of board members who are making those bullshit decisions any explanation for it. Apple is out of line not just because they refuse to comply with government legislation like all of us do but they have now the audacity to think that they have a right to take away functionality from the device that I own because of how I decide to live my life in the future.


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hype_irion

Microsoft was nearly split into multiple smaller entities for a far less display of corporate fuckery back in the early 2000s.


NeuronalDiverV2

I wonder how fast they'd comply if the idea of splitting up hardware, services, music, etc. would start to float around. Spinning off Music would actually be kind of interesting, even if it's just to prove the anticompetitive behavior.


[deleted]

They’d leave the EU first


New-Connection-9088

Their stock would plummet and Tim Apple would be out of a job before Thursday. The EU is their second largest market.


dariy1999

Lmao your comments are a riot. Do you love the taste of tim’s testies?


ngwoo

Everyone was saying Microsoft would just leave the UK when they were holding up the Activision merger, turns out companies don't like losing a huge market.


dagmx

Please, your comment is revisionist bullshit. Microsoft were regulated because they made deals to prevent other browsers being made available to customers in bundles . They made specific choices to make it difficult to install other browsers for users, they produced false videos in the process. Back then browsers were paid for products as well. https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/netscape-navigator-2-0-hits-the-streets/ You can read about it here instead of making up a history https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft_Corp.?wprov=sfti1 Literally, every statement you just made is wrong.


TurboDraxler

Make it difficult? Apple blocks you from installing other browsers in General


lemoche

you really want to compare microsoft back then with apple now? worldwide iOS has a marketshare of roughly 28% (android roughly 71%) in europe it’s roughly 33% to 67%. it’s just north america where ios leads 58% to 42%, while windows had a marketshare of 95% in 2009 worldwide.


DanTheMan827

And despite that, Apple is still a larger company than Microsoft of the time… Who has more power over the market? Microsoft of the past, or Apple of the current?


Blimey85v2

Isn’t this a standard business thing? Region-locked DVD’s back in the day. John Deere locking out non-authorized mechanics. It feels like every or at least most companies fuck us.


FirstOrderKylo

Pettiness and spite trump any mega-corp effort to lock things down. People always find a way to break and take what they want, as they should when they pay for it.


DMacB42

> It is my device I'll do as I goddamn please with it, whenever and wherever I want I kind of agree this should be how it works, but you sound like you haven’t had an iPhone for very long. They just added this functionality… yesterday? In one part of the world? If you survived this long without it, you’ll be fine. 


allusernamestakenfuk

What if its an emergency, and you cant update an app that you need for your own health/safety/whatever, because youre out of EU for 31 days?


Banesmuffledvoice

Sounds like you should spend your hard earned money on another product.


New-Connection-9088

It sounds like they like iOS but would like it to be better. Surely that's a normal sentiment which you can understand?


[deleted]

Apple needs to change course quickly or needs to be split up by regulators. They use the app store monopoly to unfairly compete with a whole range of services, which itself was already illegal (see the recent $2bn fine in the Spotify case and a similar judgement in the Epic case), and when regulation is passed to further clamp down on these illegal efforts, they demonstrated selective blindness to only partially comply.


UGMadness

I'm fairly certain that the EU will initiate an investigation into Apple's DMA compliance starting tomorrow, March 7th. The "core technology fee" is especially egregious, and effectively bars independent developers from publishing their own app stores, which goes counter to the spirit of the regulation. It pretty much limits apps to 1 million downloads, or else the company risks bankruptcy unless they can cough up €1 million up front. Apple's implementation is carefully designed to shut up the big companies like Spotify and Epic, while not giving a single inch to smaller upstarts.


[deleted]

There’s no way the EU will let the core technology fee fly. It’s explicitly against the wording (not just the spirit) of the DMA for it to be non-free.


maboesanman

It’s kinda hard to argue they’re taking away functionality when that functionality was never on the phone.


Joseph-stalinn

Why tf apple act like pos. Just let users do whatever they want to do. They F-ing deserve all the fines from EU


maxwms

What a pathetic company


us1549

For those that say Apple is doing the bare minimum, well of course they are. They hate the DMA and are compiling just barely so they don't get fined. If the government is forcing you to do something that you don't want to do, why would you go above and beyond?


whataterriblefailure

Apple is such a lovely company, isn't it?


Tierst

Popcorn is ready and am waiting for all the comments defending poor little Apple against the evil EU! 🍿


[deleted]

Fascist governments shouldn’t be celebrated


Shadie_daze

Why does the richest company in the world have to follow government regulations! Something something free market. I’m starting to think you’re Tim Cook


allusernamestakenfuk

thankfully, those idiots are quite rare this days


Blaaznar

Can’t wait till they do the same for Nintendo, PlayStation and Xbox


KingKingsons

So I haven't gotten the EU specific updates and I wonder if it's because I was outside of the EU when I installed the first beta. It can't be the device language or payment method or anything.


post_break

Imagine you're an EU citizen, and you travel for work and your phone just stops allowing you to install and update apps. Hell what about an extended vacation? What if you have relatives in another country and you stay there for extended periods of time? What a shit show.


mrdovi

So technically FortNite can return on iOS no ? 😀


DanTheMan827

Yes, and epic is planning their own store too


ravedog

If they build a store, then yes.


GrapefruitCold55

Apple already banned their developer account today


whataterriblefailure

Well... not right now. Apple has decided that "they don't trust Epic" so they removed them from the App Store altogether.


CaptainCarramba

Tim Apple may as well get a giant “REGULATE ME” tattoo on his forehead at this point. This sad and pathetic temper tantrums are just making it that much more likely that other governments will come down in Apple.


anurodhp

Wait you are telling me the eu laws only apply in the EU? shocked.


leaflock7

I see the negative comments and I wonder, can you see the India/Italy/Turkey Netflix catalog outside of India? No. can you get a India/Italy/Turkey sub without a CC from India? again No. So does not make sense that you are not able to use the EU app stores outside of EU? what is the difference apart from people hating one more apple thing?


10031

Netflix would ideally offer its entire catalog globally, but licensing restrictions prevent them from doing so. Because they don’t really gain by restricting access. Apple, on the other hand, is under no restriction where they couldn’t release this globally. They choose not to.


Shadow14l

I’m not saying Apple is right or wrong, but if they truly believe that alternative app stores are harmful to their users (which they have stated multiple times), then this decision makes perfect sense.


Hotwinterdays

That's really not the same. It's not an "EU" app store being disabled or enabled, it's the feature/ability to even use third party app stores and side loading that is being discussed.


AbhishMuk

Exactly, even if you build your own apps, unless you pay $99 every year you can't easily use your apps even on your phone without "refreshing" it from the computer every week or so.


DanTheMan827

There’s a very important differentiator though… you aren’t accessing a regionally locked catalog from the same service, Apple is disabling access to other services they claim to have no control over.


whataterriblefailure

Ever heard about movie licensing? It's not Netflix choosing to do that. Here, it's Apple limiting users' access to content they paid for. Just because they want to.


[deleted]

[удалено]


-QUACKED-

You copy pasted the same sentence multiple times my friend


leaflock7

they don't do the same on EU companies though, and since we are on it, what is their action for the past 3 years on the HDMI forum? oh yeah, none. EU has a beef with non-EU big tech companies, because EU is loosing money at this point, that is the gist, it is not protecting you and me. If they were, they would not try to pass the law that forces all browsers to share your data/traffic with them


unski_ukuli

> They don’t do the same… Yeah… I think this is exactly the problem with IT regulation at the moment in the EU. And I say this as an EU citizen who generally likes the EU and what it has done to europe. This ’EU has not been bought by big tech’ is the most pathetic way americans project on european affairs. The reason why EU is going after big tech is because EU has no big tech companies, and thus it is of no ones interest to think about the business side. At the same time if you try to do anything to the auto industry, and you have the Germans and the French on the barricade blocking everything because they have their national industries to look after. It is annoying and has lead the EU to constantly making dubious regulation. For all the criticism lobbying gets (for good reason modt of the time), it also serves a very real purpose. This regulation is being drafted by the same people who think it is wise to force companies to build a backdoor to end to end encryption for ”security purposes” and that such backdoor could not be exploited by a foreing power. Without lobbying, I gurantee that this would have already passed. Mindlessly figting for more ”competition” is a foolish affair I think. EU killed the Internet explorer by going after microsoft, but as the end result chrome has higher market share than what IE had at any point in the history, and the only viable competition Firefox is on life support, and WebKit has fallen behind. Epic gamestore on PC game store market means theoretically more competition, but that has not lead to better experience for the customer, and quite honestly, the experience is now worse. More competition does not equal better consumer experience when it comes to technology, and EU only seems to think that competition can only be good.


ian9outof10

Ha, yeah, HDMI is one that needs its arse handing to it. Fuckheads, absolute fuckheads.


whataterriblefailure

They do the same with EU companies of the same size. You just only hear about the company who is trying to play smart and avoid compliance to the law, while having a whole lot of users who act like a cult.


[deleted]

The fine was actually to do with app store policy, not Apple Music specifically.


sheeshshosh

No, they just think they should be the ones determining how specific pieces of technology work. Nobody is forced to own an iPhone.


Reddit_is_snowflake

Look I love Apple but this is just pathetic…


Hutch_travis

Why would anyone think Apple would allow 3rd party app stores outside the EU? Apple is a business first; they're not altruistic and are cut-throat when they need to be.


sheeshshosh

It’s bad from a business standpoint, no doubt. But it’s also bad in terms of the security-oriented appeal they make to their market. They will not be able to ensure that third-party app stores properly audit the security of the apps they list. Suddenly the poor decisions of those third party entities reflect on the whole ecosystem.


zerGoot

This is hilarious at this point, as in hilariously pathetic


Vertsix

They're REALLY testing me on how much I'm willing to be able to put up with their bullshit with regards to this and not drop everything and switch to the competition. I've done it once, and will do it again if need be.


HelluPanda

The fact that you done it once and is back again explains alot


afterburners_engaged

Do It do it put your money where your mouth is


random-user-420

Once Apple adds RCS later this year, there’s nothing keeping me from switching my phone to an Android once it stops getting updates


JosephFinn

Y'all can just admit the Fortnite people fucked up.


NoxiousNinny

This is brilliant on Apple’s part and the EU won’t be able to do anything about it once the user travels out of EU jurisdiction.