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Plot Twist: Apple Also Has to Follow Google Play Store Rules

Andrew Orr ·

Google has updated its Play Store rules, saying that developers have to use Google Play’s billing system. From Daring Fireball:

Most reports are mentioning Spotify and Netflix here, but unless I’m missing something this policy change (or as Google claim, “clarification”) will also apply to Apple Music — the Android version of which charges users who sign up directly. The fact that Apple forces all subscription streaming services to use Apple’s in-app payments on iOS but doesn’t use Google’s on Android for Apple Music has been a source of much heckling.

I’m on the side of Apple in the Epic v Apple case, but if Apple has to follow Google’s similar rules for developers when it hadn’t already, simultaneously enforcing similar rules on its own side for developers, is hilarious to me. I hope that made sense.

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Microsoft Still Interested in Bringing Xbox Game Pass to App Store

Andrew Orr ·

During an interview with CNBC, Microsoft Xbox lead Phil Spencer says the company remains committed to bringing Xbox Game Pass to the App Store.

With Apple changing the App Store policies, the Xbox Game Pass will be able to exist as a catalog app, which means that each game that will be available through the Game Pass will have to go through its indivudla [sic] review on the App Store. This is not really viable for a number of reasons, simply because Microsoft is talking about how it would still force a “bad experience” on the users.

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What Would Happen if Apple Was Forced to Allow Sideloaded Apps?

Andrew Orr ·

Some people want Apple to let users download sideloaded apps. These are apps that can be installed outside of the App Store, like the current situation on macOS. One counter argument is security:

“It’s not that iOS is full of holes,” he said, but that “the App Store is a natural second layer that [Apple] can filter through and decide if something would be harmful.” He agreed it wasn’t foolproof, but that it can help screen out “undesirable” apps.

My worry with sideloaded apps isn’t about the device security itself. It’s that Apple probably couldn’t control what goes on inside these apps, like SDKs that harvest our data, or developers only letting people use non-private logins like Facebook and Google. I want to use technologies like Sign In with Apple and Apple Pay, because I trust Apple with my data. To be fair, App Store apps already use trackers. As a side note, I’m linking to Apple News because of Engadget/Verizon’s new consent form when you visit the website.