The Apple-Epic saga has just taken a new turn today as the Fortnite game developer, Epic Games, shared that Apple has terminated its developer account.
It was after agreeing to abide by its rules that Apple’s lawyers sent a letter terminating its Epic Games Sweden AB account.
Epic claims the tech giant is retaliating against it for speaking out, as a letter penned by Apple exec Phil Schiller indicates.
“You also testified that Epic deliberately violated Apple’s rules, to make a point and for financial gain.
It noted, too, that its company has contractual relationships with Apple going back to 2010 for Epic’s Games, Unreal Engine, and other creator tools and Apple itself has been a public supporter of Epic’s Unreal Engine.
However, Apple is today announcing a handful of smaller concessions driven by feedback from its app developer community, it says.
In addition, the move to opt into the DMA terms is no longer a one-way switch.
However, these changes don’t address the major complaints with Apple’s DMA rules, which involve reducing commissions on App Store purchases in favor of other new fees.
Before, Apple was requiring that corporations sign up each membership it controls if it chose to opt into the DMA rules.
It also says apps that don’t comply with its guidelines will be blocked from installation — including via alternative app marketplaces.
Google has trailed another bundle of product tweaks ahead of Thursday’s deadline for compliance with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Google’s blog post further notes that users “may” see “new consent banners asking them whether they would like to link their Google services“.
The adtech giant is the DMA gatekeeper with by far the largest number of regulated platforms — eight in total; namely: Google Maps, Google Play, Google Shopping, Google Ads, Chrome, Android, Google Search and YouTube.
Elsewhere on data for ads, Google appear to be relying on its advertisers to keep a pipeline of targetable user data flowing through its ad engines.
Some of what Google is trailing in today’s blog post also appears to be re-announcing changes previously announced and/or launched in recent weeks.
Streaming music service Deezer is joining Spotify in cheering the European Union’s €1.84 billion fine imposed on Apple for breaking antitrust rules in the streaming music market.
Apple’s new DMA rules, introduced in January, are a complicated means of providing a path forward for app developers to distribute apps from alternative app marketplaces.
Deezer is among those developers who drafted an open letter to the EC last week, claiming Apple was making a “mockery” of the DMA.
So far, we’ve only heard from MacPaw, the maker of a subscription service for apps, Setapp, which announced it was switching to Apple’s DMA terms last week.
However, larger developers, like Apple critics Spotify and Epic Games, as well as tech companies like Meta, Mozilla, and Microsoft have criticized Apple’s new rules.
TikTok is introducing a data portability API to help it comply with new European regulations designed to rein in Big Tech’s market dominance through various obligations and restrictions.
Data transfersData portability and interoperability constitutes a major part of the DMA regulations, and tech companies have been bolstering their efforts on this front for several years in preparation.
Thus the data portability API goes some way toward addressing that limitation, allowing third-party developers to build conduits for data to travel from TikTok to their own apps — if the user authorizes this.
Through the API, developers can request access to “all available data,” or individual categories including TikTok posts and profile data, activity, and direct messages (DMs).
The data portability API is available to applicants globally, but the developer must be able to demonstrate a “well-defined use case” before they will be approved.
Apple’s new DMA rules have been widely criticized by developers and tech companies including also Meta, Mozilla, and Microsoft.
In the new letter, 34 companies and associations across a variety of sectors are asking the E.C.
Plus, because of the new fee structure, and the Core Technology Fee, it’s clear that few will agree to the DMA terms, the companies said.
Apple, meanwhile, also published a whitepaper today that outlines its solutions to address the changes the DMA requires to commissions and payments.
In response to the companies’ letter, an EC spokesperson told TechCrunch that the six-month deadline for Big Tech gatekeepers, like Apple, was there for a reason.
The move is notable given the pushback Apple has received on its compliance with the new EU regulation so far.
Though others have fought against Apple’s DMA rules, MacPaw has chosen to opt in — a one-way conversion that offers no ability, at present, to return to Apple’s existing rules.
The current version of Setapp offers dozens of apps for $9.99 per month and up, depending on the platform and number of devices.
While the service is being likened to an alternative app store, to be clear, it will involve a subscription for all-you-can access to its apps, which is not Apple’s App Store model.
As for developers looking for additional distribution, however, another channel for reaching iOS users could be beneficial if MacPaw’s terms are agreeable.
Apple last week announced new rules for EU app developers to comply with new regulation, the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Developer responses to the changes have been mixed, as several larger companies, including Epic Games, Spotify and more recently Microsoft, have come out against Apple’s changes, which seemed designed to ensure that Apple’s ability to profit from iPhone apps continues, regardless of how they’re discovered and installed.
This fee applies to apps both distributed on the App Store and through alternative marketplaces and is €0.50 for each first annual install per year over a 1 million threshold.
After digging through the documents Apple provided and speaking to the company, there are a few caveats and details to these rules that developers should know.
We’re compiling them below as a starting point and will add to this list over time as we learn more.
Apple last week announced new rules for EU app developers to comply with new regulation, the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Meanwhile, the company is implementing a Core Technology Fee that Apple says pays for their access to Apple’s proprietary technologies and tools, developer services and support, and platform integrity.
This fee applies to apps both distributed on the App Store and through alternative marketplaces and is €0.50 for each first annual install per year over a 1 million threshold.
After digging through the documents Apple provided and speaking to the company, there are a few caveats and details to these rules that developers should know.
We’re compiling them below as a starting point and will add to this list over time as we learn more.
On Friday, the streaming music company issued its response to Apple’s new DMA rules, calling the new fees imposed on developers “extortion” and Apple’s compliance plan “a complete and total farce,” that demonstrated the tech giant believes that the rules don’t apply to them.
It will also charge a 3% payment processing fee when developers use Apple’s in-app payments instead of their own.
Apple’s App Store will maintain its power, Ek believes.
Plus, because of the increased fees, Spotify doesn’t even have a choice, Ek explains — it’s forced to stick with the current system.
“With our EU Apple install base in the 100 million range, this new tax on downloads and updates could skyrocket our customer acquisition costs, potentially increasing them tenfold.
