Apple responds to the Australian regulator: Developers can also publish web apps

Apple is being investigated by market regulators in many regions, especially in the United States, which has initiated investigations in many states for the monopoly of the App Store.

Simply put, if developers want to cover iPhone and iPad users, they have to upload their applications to the Apple Store and pay the corresponding commission.

Any attempt to bypass the Apple Store and avoid being raked is considered a violation of the developer agreement, and Apple will remove the application or game directly.

For example, before Epic added additional payment methods in Fortnite, it was blocked by Apple. Until now, all Epic games cannot be installed on the iOS system.

A few days ago, Australian regulators are also investigating the monopoly of the app store, but this investigation seems to have caused strong dissatisfaction with Apple, which was choked back by Apple.

Apple said that the company’s app store does not have the so-called monopoly problem, because developers can develop web applications without having to put them on the Apple store.

Apple argues that the company will not restrict developers from using rich HTML5 resources to distribute applications, and iOS devices can access these applications without restriction. Of course, we know that there is still a big difference between HTML5 application and independent APP experience.

“The App Store” by Glen Bledsoe is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Apple said:

Apple has responded further to the Australian consumer watchdog’s probe of app marketplaces, this time rejecting characterisation that the Apple App Store is the most dominant app marketplace and saying there are other options for iOS users, such as by going to a website.

“Apple perceives and treats other distributors of apps, for platforms other than iOS, as significant competitors whose pricing and policies constrain Apple’s ability to exercise power over developers,” the iPhone maker said in a submission [PDF] to the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC)

“Apple is not in a position to disregard the environment in which its app marketplace operates and does not accept the Commission’s characterisation of the Apple App Store as ‘the most dominant app marketplace by a large margin’.”

It is worth noting that when Apple responded to the Australian regulatory agency, it also stated that its commission is not high because other companies’ app stores also have the same percentage.

The company’s list includes Steam, EPIC Store, Microsoft Store, Google Play, Amazon Store, etc., these commissions are indeed 30%.

Apple said that it is totally unfair for Australian regulators to bring themselves out for investigation. After all, other companies take the same proportion and Apple does not collect higher commissions. In fact, this response seems to be Apple’s strongest response to the monopoly of the app store.

Via: ZDNet