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Apple Announces App Store Small Business Program

(www.apple.com)
830 points todsacerdoti | 16 comments | 18 Nov 20 11:04 UTC | HN request time: 1.443s | source | bottom
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saagarjha ◴[18 Nov 20 11:12 UTC] No.25135463[source]▶
This is good for smaller developers, but it doesn't really seem to solve the actual problem? All the people who are willing to go to war with Apple and have teeth are making way more than that…
replies(2): >>25135566 #>>25145179 #
breakfastduck ◴[18 Nov 20 11:24 UTC] No.25135566[source]▶
Yes but many of the larger players who are willing to go to war use the 'its not fair on smaller developers' argument against them.

This really slaps down the ability to use that.

replies(4): >>25135596 #>>25135656 #>>25135846 #>>25140735 #
1. varispeed ◴[18 Nov 20 11:35 UTC] No.25135656[source]▶
15% is still not fair.
replies(2): >>25135663 #>>25135796 #
2. HatchedLake721 ◴[18 Nov 20 11:37 UTC] No.25135663[source]▶
And you calculated that how?
replies(1): >>25135743 #
3. varispeed ◴[18 Nov 20 11:46 UTC] No.25135743[source]▶
It's a level that state would take to take care for roads, healthcare, civil service, army and so on. There is no justification for such high % to maintain an app. They could charge per app review and maybe the data transfer fee no more than Amazon S3. Anything else is Apple abusing their monopoly. Developer can't submit their app to an alternative app store because Apple doesn't allow that and it must change.
replies(3): >>25135751 #>>25135986 #>>25136319 #
4. HatchedLake721 ◴[18 Nov 20 11:48 UTC] No.25135751{3}[source]▶
> There is no justification for such high % to maintain an app

Again, you calculated that how?

5. simonh ◴[18 Nov 20 11:55 UTC] No.25135796[source]▶
For app store listing and promotion, application delivery all over the world to hundreds of millions of devices, access to back end services like notifications and iCloud storage, and sales transaction processing? Really?

Imagine if you had to develop or pay for all of those services individually. Your own download site, product promotion, services, a third party transaction processor, a content delivery network, bespoke cloud syncing, etc, etc.

replies(2): >>25135994 #>>25136007 #
6. breakfastduck ◴[18 Nov 20 12:24 UTC] No.25135986{3}[source]▶
It's not 'maintain' - its offer all the services that come along with it (integrations, store, download, hosting, authentication).

If you produce a food product, you should expect the store to take a cut of the price before it gets to you.

replies(2): >>25136010 #>>25136626 #
7. varispeed ◴[18 Nov 20 12:25 UTC] No.25135994[source]▶
Well, the app store cannot exist without app and phone without apps is essentially worthless (unless it has at least the caller app). So who is promoting who? The so called application delivery is just a file server that anyone can setup for peanuts these days. Apple offers no alternative for notifications or storage - there is no competition so they can dictate extortionate prices. Yes many companies would love to run these services on their own, but they can't as Apple is blocking it.
replies(1): >>25136815 #
8. pg_bot ◴[18 Nov 20 12:27 UTC] No.25136007[source]▶
30% is honestly a terrible deal as Apple does not provide the value for the money they are charging. The difference is you are forced into that arrangement you don't have the option of doing it all yourself.

If you had to develop all of those services yourself, it would look a lot like the internet. None of the things you mention are particularly challenging for the modern web.

replies(1): >>25136333 #
9. varispeed ◴[18 Nov 20 12:27 UTC] No.25136010{4}[source]▶
These things that you listed are not that expensive to run.

If you produce a food product you can also set up your own store, but you can't in case of Apple.

replies(1): >>25143618 #
10. viktorcode ◴[18 Nov 20 13:09 UTC] No.25136319{3}[source]▶
Unlike a commercial company a state is not for-profit enterprise. Maybe you think that app stores shouldn't be for-profit marketplaces either?
replies(1): >>25149831 #
11. viktorcode ◴[18 Nov 20 13:10 UTC] No.25136333{3}[source]▶
I don't get "you are forced" part. If a deal is bad for you, don't take it.
replies(1): >>25149805 #
12. ◴[18 Nov 20 13:46 UTC] No.25136626{4}[source]▶
13. ◴[18 Nov 20 14:03 UTC] No.25136815{3}[source]▶
14. alisonkisk ◴[19 Nov 20 14:29 UTC] No.25149805{4}[source]▶
Then you are a victim of Apple's tortious interference between yourself and your customers. Apple installs malware on every iDevice preventing users from installing apps they choose to purchase from 3rd parties.
15. alisonkisk ◴[19 Nov 20 14:30 UTC] No.25149820{6}[source]▶
Dropbox is great. But Apple bans its customers and app developers from using Dropbox as an an app delivery system.
16. alisonkisk ◴[19 Nov 20 14:31 UTC] No.25149831{4}[source]▶
The state is not-for-profit because it is a monopoly. Like Apple.