Ah yes, the Apple App Store. Many of us who are as old as dirt (like yours really) can remember when Apple and Google from time to time revealed how many applications were in the App Store and the Android Market. In late 2009, IDC predicted that the launch of Apple’s purported tablet would help bring the number of apps in the iOS store to 300,000 a year later. And you might remember how Apple marketed the store. For almost everything, Apple would tell us that “there is an application for that”.
Apple will allow some game streaming services to be available on the App Store with qualifications.
Now, with roughly 2.2 billion apps on the App Store, the latter has become something of a legal and regulatory headache for Apple despite the money it generates for the company’s vault. The infamous Apple Tax gives Apple a 30% cut on in-app purchases, and because the company doesn’t allow iOS users to install an app from a third-party app store, Apple is forcing users to users to pay more for certain applications. This is the subject of a class action lawsuit against Apple and investigations by regulatory agencies in the US and Europe; last year, the Supreme Court of the United States, by 5-4 votes, it ruled that the plaintiffs could try to show that Apple acted as a monopoly by raising the price of apps on the App Store. But Apple claims that its role, when it comes to the App Store, is that of an intermediary and that it should not figure in this suit. Disagreeing with Apple, the Supreme Court said that iPhone and iPad users buy their apps directly from Apple. This allows iOS and iPadOS device owners to sue Apple directly.
Google Stadia and other game streamers are now allowed, with certain rules, in the App Store
With iOS 14 about to be released, CNBC reports that Apple has revised the App Store guidelines for the next version of iOS. These guidelines are used by Apple employees to approve or deny apps and / or app updates on the App Store. This is a very timely matter considering that Apple recently removed the popular game Fortnite from the App Store and shut down developer accounts belonging to Epic Games late last month. Epic had violated Apple regulations that prevent developers from trying to avoid Apple’s 30% tax by offering their own direct payment system.
Epic gave some Fortnite users who had downloaded the game from the App Store the option to subscribe via direct payment to Epic. The developer offered a 20% discount in the amount of $ 2 (@ $ 7.99) to those who accepted Epic on their offer. Apple charges $ 9.99 to subscribe to the game through its in-app payment platform.
Apple will now allow certain game streaming services like Google Stadia and Microsoft xCloud in the iOS app store with some caveats. Games must be downloaded directly from the App Store and not from an “all-in-one application”. Developers may offer a “catalog app” that links to other games on the service, but each game must be an individual app. This means that if a streaming service has 100 games, each will need an individual App Store listing and a developer account with Apple. The games will have to offer some sort of basic functionality when installed and accept Apple’s in-app purchase system that gives the tech giant a 30% cut from such purchases.
A Microsoft spokesperson said: “This is still a bad experience for customers. Players want to jump directly into a game from their selected catalog within an app, just like they do with movies or songs, and not be forced to download more than 100 applications to individually play games from the cloud “. Apple wants streaming services to be like a game bundle and says it will have to examine each game individually. The company offers its own iOS game bundle that you can subscribe to; this, of course, is Apple Arcade.
Another change made by Apple affects individual individual lessons offered through the App Store. These virtual lessons can now be offered without Apple taking its 30% cut. However, Apple will still take 30% for classes that one teacher teaches to multiple students.
