As promised back at WWDC, Apple is now allowing developers to challenge App Store rules. Apps that are already on the App Store will no longer need to resolve guideline violations before Apple approves bug fixes -- unless those violations are related to legal issues. And Apple will allow developers to suggest changes to its guidelines.
Apple announced that these changes are live and explained that while guideline violations won’t hold up bug fixes, developers will need to address guideline violations in their next submissions.
As you may remember, Apple came up with these changes shortly after a public battle with Basecamp over the “Hey” email app. Apple rejected Basecamp’s bug fixes because the app required users to sign up for Hey on the web and there was no option for in-app purchases or trials, which would have generated a commission for Apple. Later, Apple reversed its decision, allowing the bug fixes to go through, and Basecamp came up with a compromise, a free trial available through the app.
These changes, announced shortly after that debacle, could avoid a similar situation from happening in the future. But less than two weeks ago, Apple reportedly blocked WordPress app updates to force in-app purchase support, and Apple is fighting another battle with Epic Games, which recently started offering Fortnite discounts for players who bypass App Store purchases.
You have to wonder how receptive Apple will be to suggestions, when so many have pushed back against its policy of collecting hefty commissions on in-app purchases.
Facebook has become the latest company to rally against Apple’s fees for in-app purchases. The social network announced a new update, aimed at small businesses, which will allow companies to charge for online events. With the update, which wasfirst previewedin April, business owners could plan an online event, like a cooking or workout class, and charge their followers for access. But Facebook says business owners won’t be able to benefit from the feature as much as they should due to Apple’s developer policies. While Facebook says it doesn’t plan to take any cut from small business’ event revenue for “at least the next year,” it notes that Apple will still take its standard commission on purchases made via Facebook’s iOS app.
“We asked Apple to reduce its 30% App Store tax or allow us to offer Facebook Pay so we could absorb all costs for businesses struggling during COVID-19,” Facebook wrote in a blog post. “Unfortunately, they dismissed both our requests and SMBs will only be paid 70% of their hard-earned revenue.”
The social network said it plans to alert its users in its app that Apple gets a 30 percent cut of their purchase, and that it’s submitted the update for Apple’s approval and is awaiting a response. Apple didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
On Facebook’s Android app and website, events will use Facebook Pay so business owners will get the full amount, according to the company.
“What we are pushing on is that all tech companies who can afford to do so join us in supporting small businesses,” Facebook VP Fidji Simo said during a call with reporters Friday.
The move makes Facebook the latest tech giant to pile onto Apple as it faces antitrust scrutiny over its App Store policies. It comes one day after Fortite maker Epic sued the iPhone-maker after it kicked Fortnite out of the App Store over its attempt to bypass Apple’s 30 percent commission. Since then, Spotify and Tinder-owner Match Group have issued statements in support of EPic’s fight against Apple’s “unfair” policies.
But this is far from the first time a disagreement between Facebook and Apple has played out publicly. Apple has repeatedly criticized Facebook over its privacy policies and Apple briefly bricked Facebook’s internal apps after the company was caught violating its rules for enterprise apps.
Simo said the new event feature is meant to help businesses that have been hurt most by closures due to COVID-19. The feature will use Facebook Live, and is also being tested with Messenger Rooms. It will be available in 20 countries, including the United States, UK and Australia, to pages that meet its monetization rules.
Apple has removedFortnitefrom the App Store, according toBloomberg’s Marc Gurman. The delisting comes just hours afterFortnitedeveloper Epic Games started offering discounts on the game’s V-bucks currency and other cash purchases if playersbypassed the App Store and Google Play. For the couple of hours that it was available, the discount let players save up to 20 percent on their nextFortnitepurchase, and gave Epic the opportunity to avoid giving Apple the 30 percent cut it takes from third-party developers.
Even for a studio that has consistently pushed back against companies like Google and Valve, the way Epic highlighted the discount was likely too brazen for Apple to ignore. While Epic still gave players the option to go through the App Store, few likely did after seeing that they could save money.
Shortly after the removal, the company filed a lawsuit against Apple. Epic also announced it would stream a new short called Nineteen Eighty-Fortnite, which you can watch below. The title of the short is a reference to Apple’s iconic 1984 Macintosh ad. Epic also mentioned 1984 in their legal brief.
“Today, Epic Games took the unfortunate state of violating the App Store guidelines that are applied equally to every developer and designed to keep the store safe for our users. As result their Fortnite app has been removed from the Store,” said Apple. “Epic enabled a feature in its app which was not reviewed or approved by Apple, and they did so with the express intent of violating the App Store guidelines regarding in-app payments that apply to every developer who sells digital goods or services.”
The two companies have been moving towards a confrontation for a while now. In an interview with CNBC this past July, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney criticized the tech giant for the 30 percent revenue cut it takes from developers. “They [Apple] are preventing an entire category of businesses and applications from being engulfed in their ecosystem by virtue of excluding competitors from each aspect of their business that they’re protecting,” Sweeney said.
This isn’t the first time Sweeney and Epic have picked a fight with a tech giant. In 2016, the executive penned a scathing op-ed against Microsoft’s Universal Windows Platform (UWP). Sweeney argued the initiative was the first step toward Microsoft locking down a monopoly on app distribution in Windows 10. In a way, Sweeney and company won. While Microsoft hasn’t abandoned UWP, it has in the years since significantly scaled back the project.
Epic isn’t the only company that has criticized Apple for its App Store policies. Two other high-profile examples include Spotify and Basecamp. The tech giant is also the subject of antitrust investigations in the US and EU.
