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jimmy_john

macrumors member
Jun 28, 2023
74
108
Epic shouldn't be allowed to charge anything. Apple should put all there apps in their store and then sue when they charge them

That's true. Apple could put their entire App Store inside the Epic App Store, continue to charge 30%, and not pay Epic anything since they'd use their own payment processing. You get all the hosting for free.
 
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Jensend

macrumors 65816
Dec 19, 2008
1,412
1,618
That's true. Apple could put their entire App Store inside the Epic App Store, continue to charge 30%, and not pay Epic anything since they'd use their own payment processing. You get all the hosting for free.
As I explained to you before, that's already allowed on the Epic Game store.
Epic would distribute the Apple App Store app for free, but Apple would provide the hosting for games within their App Store App, just like Epic wants to provide their own hosting.
 

mac.ross

macrumors regular
Oct 27, 2012
141
101
Let's see how long that lasts, Epic took a lower 12% cut for no other reason than to try and undercut the rest of the market in the hope that they'd be able to convert it into paying customers, unfortunately for them they still have to practically beg people to use their platform by giving out games free of charge.

The funniest part to me is that they've been running the Epic Games Store since 2018 and are still posting massive losses year on year, it's not particularly sustainable at all despite their anti-consumer exclusivity approach to try and force people to use their store.
 

CarAnalogy

macrumors 601
Jun 9, 2021
4,270
7,876
Only a small handful will be successful, and almost everything will still be available on the Apple App store.

I have 7 gaming app stores on my PC, plus a couple of one-offs that weren't initially in an app store, like Minecraft

  • Steam - General all around best store.
  • Epic - Offers a free game or two each week. Has the best discounts during sales, subsidized by Epic.
  • GOG - Offers older games that have been updated to work on modern computers. Now offers modern games as well. DRM-free: you can download installers and use them offline without using a gaming client.
  • Humble - Offers bundles of games at a discount. I don't use them as much because they abandoned initial features like always being DRM free.
  • itch.io - Mostly smaller independent games. They've had a few massive bundles of games where all revenue when to charities. I also occasionally play free games on their site through the web browser.
  • Xbox / Game Pass - Subscription service.
  • Amazon Games - Free games for Prime Subscribers. You can keep the games even after your Prime subscription expires.
I understand, many people wouldn't want to deal with all those stores, but the vast majority of games I play from the other stores are also available on Steam. Steam alone has a bigger and better variety of games than any other game platform, including closed ones like on the iPhone or consoles.

All of these stores/platforms have public APIs, and there are a couple of apps (Playnite, GOG Galaxy) that can show you all the games you own across all the major platforms.

This is exactly my point. I just deleted my Ubisoft account because I had exactly one free with video card purchase copy of rainbow six something or other I never played. I could see where there had been attempts to log in to the account by "hackers." They wouldn't let me turn on OTP two factor without first giving them my phone number. So I just deleted it.

I have just about all those accounts you listed as well and I don't want to keep up with all that, and I'm far better at keeping up with accounts than the average person.

And that's just games. I don't want all software to be this way.
 
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sleepybear723

Suspended
Mar 14, 2024
43
85
I haven't seen anyone argue that app stores should take no commission. If anyone does, they're wrong.
Everyone seems to want everything for free these days.

Don't like the 30% cut, nobody is forcing you to take the deal. Apple is providing a store, exposure, a consumer base that is generally willing to pay for things over other consumer bases (android), payment processing, a platform for you to develop on and hosting. I modeled this and 30% is a fair deal compared to setting all this up on your own and getting the exposure, advertising and sales volume needed to succeed.

Typical small business credit card pricing is 3.5% + 30 cents per transaction for online (manually keyed) transactions. Sell a 99 cent app, they're taking more than 30% and you still have to host your app, market it, deal with chargebacks/refunds and other customer service.
 
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falainber

macrumors 68040
Mar 16, 2016
3,445
4,019
Wild West
Any game developer that uses IAP should be brain dead to keep his app in the App Store if he can distribute it via Epic Store and keep 30% Apple tax.
 

falainber

macrumors 68040
Mar 16, 2016
3,445
4,019
Wild West
Everyone seems to want everything for free these days.

Don't like the 30% cut, nobody is forcing you to take the deal. Apple is providing a store, exposure, a consumer base that is generally willing to pay for things over other consumer bases (android), payment processing, a platform for you to develop on and hosting. I modeled this and 30% is a fair deal compared to setting all this up on your own and getting the exposure, advertising and sales volume needed to succeed.

Typical small business credit card pricing is 3.5% + 30 cents per transaction for online (manually keyed) transactions. Sell a 99 cent app, they're taking more than 30% and you still have to host your app, market it, deal with chargebacks/refunds and other customer service.
"Don't like the 30% cut, nobody is forcing you to take the deal." They do force you because there is no other deal available (not until now).
 
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gatorvet96

macrumors regular
Apr 21, 2016
232
650
You'll have to elaborate on how Epic are being hypocritical because from what I'm seeing

(1) the 12% fee is less than the 15% or 30% fee Apple charges;

(2) they're allowing app developers to use their own payment processing method, something Apple doesn't allow ("there are no fees for apps that offer in-game purchases and use their own payment processing method.");

(3) they're not blocking app developers from advertising alternative payment methods, something Apple doesn't allow
And they also didn’t develop the operating system or API‘s, so deserve less
 
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erikkfi

macrumors 68000
May 19, 2017
1,726
8,084
Everyone seems to want everything for free these days.

Don't like the 30% cut, nobody is forcing you to take the deal. Apple is providing a store, exposure, a consumer base that is generally willing to pay for things over other consumer bases (android), payment processing, a platform for you to develop on and hosting. I modeled this and 30% is a fair deal compared to setting all this up on your own and getting the exposure, advertising and sales volume needed to succeed.

Typical small business credit card pricing is 3.5% + 30 cents per transaction for online (manually keyed) transactions. Sell a 99 cent app, they're taking more than 30% and you still have to host your app, market it, deal with chargebacks/refunds and other customer service.
That’s fine but there should be more stores, and Apple shouldn’t be able to set the business terms for the others.
 
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Jensend

macrumors 65816
Dec 19, 2008
1,412
1,618
This is exactly my point. I just deleted my Ubisoft account because I had exactly one free with video card purchase copy of rainbow six something or other I never played. I could see where there had been attempts to log in to the account by "hackers." They wouldn't let me turn on OTP two factor without first giving them my phone number. So I just deleted it.

I have just about all those accounts you listed as well and I don't want to keep up with all that, and I'm far better at keeping up with accounts than the average person.

And that's just games. I don't want all software to be this way.
You seem to have missed the part where I pointed out that even a gamer just stuck to Steam, they would still have access to a wider selection of good games than any single console store.

And Steam works across OSes. I primarily game on a Windows PC, but also occasionally on a MacBook Pro. Only a fraction of the games have MacOS versions, but for those that do, I can play them on the go and sync my process on the cloud. That is one less store and one less purchase that I need to make.

I understand not wanting to deal with multiple stores, but I currently do that because of value, not because of exclusivity.


Edit: also, even a consumer using the iOS app store may still has to deal with external accounts, like Netflix and Spotify.
 
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Bobbuilds69

macrumors member
Jun 8, 2022
74
181
Apparently Epic has hurt a lot of people’s feelings.
Did your feelings get hurt too? Please tell us where Apple hurt you. Was it 1 or 2?
 

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erikkfi

macrumors 68000
May 19, 2017
1,726
8,084
I’d like to buy my Audi from a BMW dealer please.
This comparison makes no sense because there’s no platform. A smartphone app isn’t in any way comparable to a car brand. Just say that you own Apple stock and want them to retain their high-margin on-platform app distribution monopoly and we can move on with our lives.
 
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Beautyspin

macrumors 65816
Dec 14, 2012
1,010
1,175
You certainly should follow your morals/beliefs/etc... But just consider that the developer getting 85% of a vastly smaller audience and thereby a vastly smaller revenue amount would actually make the developer earn LESS money not more. As someone who regularly works with App Developers (bizdev stuff) I don't know ANY who are going to pursue another store because they don't want to decimate their revenues!
Consider an App that is rejected by Apple for frivolous reasons. It can now go to Epic store, pay 12% and make money. Apple would now have to negotiate with that app to make it come back to the AppStore. Roles reversed.

Also, Apple has no business taking a cut from in-app purchases.
 

macfacts

macrumors 601
Oct 7, 2012
4,794
5,615
Cybertron
I think the bigger question is what is Epic offering for a 12% cut? We know Apple is offering the development tools, entire ecosystem, constant relevance through new products, etc.... Epic is creating a store on that foundation and then offering what? Nothing.
Apple didn't invent object -C.
 

Jensend

macrumors 65816
Dec 19, 2008
1,412
1,618
/s Hold up. Weren’t these the freedom fighters saving all devs from fees? Didn’t they say the fee should be $0? 🤦‍♂️😡
Nope. That is a very popular straw man representation of what Epic wants, though.
 

macfacts

macrumors 601
Oct 7, 2012
4,794
5,615
Cybertron
Looking at the math....

Current App Store - Millions of customers...but for simplicity sake call it 1 million
Developer sells to 0.1% of them - 100,000
Developer charges $1
Developer makes $70,000
Apple Makes $30,000

Epic App Store
Epic will get...what maybe 10% of the users if they are lucky in five years?
So 100,000 total available users
Developer sells to 0.1% of them - 10,000
Developer charges $1
Developer makes $8,500
Epic Makes $1,500

So Epic makes money, the developer loses over $60K and Apple is "punished" ? Who is winning here? It only seems like Epic...
Apple is free to form their own country and judges.
 
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bartmoss

macrumors newbie
Nov 9, 2021
27
45
Yeah I don't care what the percentages are. Epic is a ****** company and I wouldn't trust them, ever.
 
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MacBH928

macrumors G3
May 17, 2008
8,351
3,734
people complain when interest rate raised 1%. Epic slashes 18% is considered no big deal.
 

paul4339

macrumors 65816
Sep 14, 2009
1,450
733
Consider an App that is rejected by Apple for frivolous reasons. It can now go to Epic store, pay 12% and make money. Apple would now have to negotiate with that app to make it come back to the AppStore. Roles reversed.

Also, Apple has no business taking a cut from in-app purchases.

Sure but Apple generally won’t negotiate to get the app back… Apple’s App Store commissions is 15% but the size and reach of the App Store will be much much larger than Epic’s store charging 12% plus 0.50 euro CTF fee. Most developers will gladly take <3% haircut if they can get a lot more sales.

Google’s App Store always allowed other app stores to exist… the volume of sales from independent app stores is very tiny compared Google Play, even if their commissions are slightly lower. Major developers will sooner just -abide by the rules- and go for the larger market… Google doesn’t need to fight the smaller app stores to get apps to move to Google Play.


From a general consumer perspective it probably won’t make much a diff since you won’t see significant price changes… just more money will go to company A over company B.
 
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pacalis

macrumors 65816
Oct 5, 2011
1,004
662
People thought Epic games was fighting for consumers :)
this was all about Epic games revenue.

Epic stranded kids playing Fortnite on Apple products at the start of the pandemic just so they could violate their contract and make a video making fun of Apple.

They could have just sued Apple and let it play out in the courts, but why do that when you can screw some of your customers?
 
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Beautyspin

macrumors 65816
Dec 14, 2012
1,010
1,175
Sure but Apple generally won’t negotiate to get the app back… Apple’s App Store commissions is 15% but the size and reach of the will be much much larger than Epic’s store charging 12%. Most developers will gladly take a 3% haircut if they can get a lot more sales.

Google’s App Store always allowed other app stores to exist… the volume of sales from independent app stores is very tiny compared Google Play, even if their commissions are slightly lower. Major developers will sooner just -abide by the rules- and go for the larger market… Google doesn’t need to fight the smaller app stores to get apps to move to Google Play.


From a general consumer perspective it probably won’t make much a diff since you won’t see significant price changes… just more money will go company A over company B.
"Generally" is the operative word. Until now, the app developers had no choice. Put up with Apple or get out of iOS system completely. With alt appstores, this changes. Imagine Facebook, instagra, and WhatsApp leaving Appstore. Even without Alt appstores, Apple had to negotiate with Netflix, Uber, Amazon and other Apps.

Google has a different problem due to which they are also under Antitrust investigations. Things will change for Android also once those are completed.
 
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