The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) will investigate whether Apple abuses the position it has attained with its App Store. ACM will do so following indications that ACM has received from other app providers over the course of its market study into app stores. That market study has been published today.
Henk Don, Member of the Board of ACM, explains: ‘To a large degree, app providers depend on Apple and Google for offering apps to users. In the market study, ACM has received indications from app providers, which seem to indicate that Apple abuses its position in the App Store. That is why ACM sees sufficient reason for launching a follow-up investigation, on the basis of competition law.’
This will be a long, protracted legal battle – in multiple European countries.
I wonder how much of this stems from Apple attempting to keep it’s interface from getting out of control? I got a big Android update last night. Some things aren’t working, all the icons are different and … I don’t like them. Things seem very willy nilly on the update. I happen to have a Samsung S8. Great phone, but with an update a lot of things can get broken. Is Apple possibly being accused of this partially because they have tight control on the apps, and an attempting to avoid what I just experienced with my Android update?
I doubt it. I don’t usually agree with these anti-trust suits, but Apple does sometimes abuse its position in regards to the App Store. It’s not as bad as it once was, but it’s still there. They’re talking about installing third-party apps, not the operating system updates.
This is more about Apple being able to tell users, without recourse or appeal, what they can and can’t install. No third-party stores, no side-loading, nothing. It means that, if Apple doesn’t like a developer’s app, that app does not get installed. If Apple doesn’t agree with a developer’s political stance, that app could be removed from the store. If Apple dislikes the content in an app for any reason… you get the idea. Note, that’s not to say they regularly do these things (though it has happened), but they have the power to do these things if the app reviewer (whoever that is at any given time) wishes it.
I don’t mind them having full, even draconian, jurisdiction on their own app store. What I do mind is that I can’t take my business to a different app store to avoid them when necessary.
That being said, I still use Apple devices over Androids, precisely because of the issues you are describing. I got tired of system updates breaking random things and changing everything around for no good reason other than to make it look like they’re doing something.
darknexus,
This is my position as well. Apple should be allowed to determine what kind of software (and music, etc) is sold through it’s stores because store owners shouldn’t be forced to sell anything. However whenever a store has the ability to stop owners from going to other stores, that’s abusive.
As it applies to the recent spottily lawsuit against apple, users should obviously be allowed to go to competing streaming services without any interference from apple. This doesn’t mean apple must loose control over what it wants to do within it’s store, but preventing spotify from opening a competing store is blatantly anti-competitive. That needs to stop and I hope the courts do the right thing and finally put an end to it.
https://deadline.com/2019/03/spotify-sues-apple-in-europe-over-music-service-alleging-unfair-advantage-due-to-fees-for-streaming-1202574949/
“As it applies to the recent spottily lawsuit against apple, users should obviously be allowed to go to competing streaming services without any interference from apple.”
You can use whatever you want. Owning an Apple device, does not restrict the customer to use only devices or services.
cybergorf,
You may not like the truth, but the whole reason for these investigations and lawsuits is the restrictions that apple imposes on owner rights to block competing app stores & online services. There’s no question that apple is guilty of doing that, the only question is whether or not courts will enforce the consumer rights that apple has taken away. I think it’s short sighted and dangerous for the future of digital goods to give corporations this much control over device owners. If you feel apple should be allowed to exert their control over what owners are allowed to do with their devices after sale, well maybe that’s your opinion, but at least you should have the spine to own up to the truth that you believe in ownership restrictions rather than lying to yourself and others here that there are none.
> If you feel apple should be allowed to exert their
> control over what owners are allowed to do with their
> devices after sale, well maybe that’s your opinion,
That is not my opinion and I do certainly not like it, but I do not see the difference to what e.g. Sony does on Playstation or mobile service providers do on feature phones or car manufactures with their built in navigation systems.
> but at least you should have the spine to own up to
> the truth that you believe in ownership restrictions
> rather than lying to yourself and others here that
> there are none.
please relax and read my post once more:
owning an Apple device does not prevent me from using any other service – for some services I will need an other device, of course.
cybergorf,
Hey, I fully encourage you to speak up against owner restrictions anywhere you see them, however it appears you’re just trying to pivot from the topic. Apple still needs to be investigated for it’s own anti-competitive abuses regardless of what others may also be guilty of.
It’s still rubbish. Do we let car manufacturers tell owners they can use any 3rd party mechanic they please, but only if they go buy a new car? No of course not, that kind of restriction is inherently anti-competitive. Yet this is what apple is doing today. They’re explicitly blocking owners from going to 3rd party competitors for software, services, and repairs. We can all see that apple’s behavior is blatantly anti-competitive.
When it comes to apple being allowed to exert control over what owners are allowed to do with their devices after sale, you say “That is not my opinion and I do certainly not like it”. Well that’s the point, it’s bad for owners. If you want to side with apple but dislike the stigma of anti-competitive restrictions as you say, well tough, because that’s what apple’s position represents.
To solve this conflict, you’ve got to stop straddling the fence and take a definitive stance on the issue. Either be for corporations controlling what owners are allowed to do on their own devices after sale, or be for owners having the right to decide what they can do on their own devices after sale.
My position on owner freedoms is fairly consistent regardless of the name on the box. I strongly believe we should always do everything we can to protect owner rights and freedoms, otherwise we greatly increase the risk of loosing control over our digital lives. By letting corporations do this to us today, we’re putting together the pieces of an orwellian dystopia.
Is there any difference to how console manufacturers like Nintendo, Sony or MS control the software that gets published on their devices?
(Apple does not even have a dominant position in Europe … marketshare is about 20% for phones and much less for computers)
I agree with you. Console manufacturers should also be investigated.
Flawless victory. 😛 (and especially big N does some shaeningans – witch each console, a relaunch of retro games store; old purchases not-transferable)
Good for them. I say it was about time. Until now, only against Google and Microsoft everyone went. But what about apple which forces you to use their browser and their apps?
You are forced to update every now and then your tablet and make it slower and then when there is no support for the latest version you cannot continue using it because the companies update their software to latest version not running on your tablet, so what? you have to go and buy a new one?
Recently I couldn’t run Skype on my iPad because everytime I run it I was asked to update it to the latest version, but it’s not compatible with my iPad and the same with teamviewer. And I’m sure the same applies to other apps
It’s about time the are fined and forced to pay huge amount of money