Newspapers warn Apple over sales

cymatty

cymatty

cymatty

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-12391899

I am having a discussion with people on facebook about this (apple fan boys ;)) who are trying to compare this to visa/mastercard charging 2% per transaction.

My argument isn't just that apple are making developers pay to use its service it is the lack of choice.

With both the credit card examples there are alternative ways to get the charge cheaper or indeed free.

In this example there is no alternative method as apple will not let you do anything without the app store. I am sure the publishers would offer the item free from their website and do all the admin if apple let them. On android you do not have to use the market so publishers could do this.

The publishers have already said they want to offer the content free but are not allowed, this is screwing over the end user who may have already paid for a version of the content but are being deprived of phone browsing by apples stupid controlling nature.

What are your thoughts?
 
In this example there is no alternative method
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Yes there is - buy into a different, less restrictive platform.

But oh wait, people aren't. And it is to people whom the newspaper want to sell.

This is consumer choice at play - not an Apple monopoly.
 
cymatty said:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-12391899In this example there is no alternative method as apple will not let you do anything without the app store.
Click to expand...

According to the article, they just have to have the option to purchase through the app store - not that can only purchase in-app. If the paper's were to put the in-app purchase cost higher than the out of purchase cost then surely that would solve the problem?
 
cymatty said:
I haven't :p

I am just annoyed that this is hurting the consumer and people are defending it. Just wanted to check I wasnt going mad and that my reasoning was logical.
Click to expand...

Hurting consumers how? If you don't want to pay, don't buy it and go elsewhere. This isn't an essential service, it's an optional luxury which people are freely buying of their own free will.

I don't have an iPhone by the way, got an ancient Nokia brick with no colour screen, no MMS capability, no fancy ring tones and definately - no camera :p
 
Apple fanboys are the idiots of the digital world, this is nothing new, but it is shocking how the phenomenon has exploded with little to no resistance - it is an orgy of stupidity. Buyers suckle on Jobs' teat like subservient lambs without questioning the how or why of their hardware and software.

It's damaging the industry but these mongoloids don't and won't realize it. Nice one.
 
Ekim said:
According to the article, they just have to have the option to purchase through the app store - not that can only purchase in-app. If the paper's were to put the in-app purchase cost higher than the out of purchase cost then surely that would solve the problem?
Click to expand...

The problem is papers want to release stuff for free through the app store and apple wont let them.
 
I prefer to go to the websites directly, the content is better and isn't restricted like apps are.
 
cymatty said:
The problem is papers want to release stuff for free through the app store and apple wont let them.
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I admittedly don't know all of the ins and outs, but I am pretty sure its easy to release something for free on the app store, the issue is that the publishers want to specifically make the content free for their print subscribers.

Apple demand that there is an in-app purchase route (for which they take a % of the profit), however the publishers are allowed to have their own route for purchase, if the iTunes route is there also.

As long as they have both I can't see how there is an issue. If you want to make it free for your readers, the go through the out of app route and you gift them the subscription through your own routes.
 
Isn't it that the subscription will be paid via iTunes which takes the percentage of 30%!
 
Why? That's screwing over iTunes users by 30%, I'm sure they wouldn't get away with that.
 
They aren't screwing the customer, they are giving them an option to pay a lower price, should they wish to purchase through other means than iTunes. Perhaps if it was phrased as out of app purchases are discounted it sounds better.
 
Stretch said:
Agreed.
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Why? It doesn't make sense.

I think this is just politics of envy at play.

The iPad isn't the only tablet available. You don't need an iPad to do particular things (as you did with Windows). Apple is not forcing you to subscribe via iTunes to see the content - you can, if you want, open up Safari and access a pay-walled newspaper site (and use it very well, for that matter).
 
I was pretty shocked with itunes store yesterday in fact. I wanted to try out Star Trek Enterprise so I thought I'd buy the series with a £25 itunes voucher I had got for my birthday. The price for the series on itunes? £51.49 (or as close to as makes no difference)! I ordered the physical dvd copy, which if I want I can rip and put on my ipod for £14. That's less than the difference I would have had to pay if I'd used my £25 voucher card..
 
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