> Apple can charge whatever they feel is appropriate.
I think you are answering a slightly different question than I’m asking. You might think they should be allowed to run their platform however they want but the reality is that because of their size and power, they can’t. Regulators will at least force them to allow alternate payment providers and if Apple keeps pushing back, they will eventually be forced to allow side loading or alternate app stores (which I would think would be a disaster).
So given the regulatory environment they exist in, they only way their current strategy is smart is if they can defeat the EU. I don’t think they can and I think we will all be worse off in a few years because of Apple’s petulance.
yep, and that’s probably what’s going to get them in the most trouble. The platform is getting to the point where I could see it being regulated like a public utility.
If my electricity company starts fucking around, people might literally freeze to death.
Apple store is not at all like a public utility, it would be downright madness to regulate it like such. Public utilities have very real impact on the lives of the public, Apple tax doesn’t.
> How about if your telephone company starts fucking around?
If emergency calls don’t work, people die. Phone calls not working would have significant economic impact too, although less so nowadays.
The transactions covered by Apple Tax only pay a significant part in some developers lives, they don’t matter to the public in the same way utilities do.
> I’m saying that Apples obstinance is going to lead them there.
Unlikely, the iOS appdev lobbyists don’t have that kind of pull.
I think you are answering a slightly different question than I’m asking. You might think they should be allowed to run their platform however they want but the reality is that because of their size and power, they can’t. Regulators will at least force them to allow alternate payment providers and if Apple keeps pushing back, they will eventually be forced to allow side loading or alternate app stores (which I would think would be a disaster).
So given the regulatory environment they exist in, they only way their current strategy is smart is if they can defeat the EU. I don’t think they can and I think we will all be worse off in a few years because of Apple’s petulance.