Cydia, the 'original iPhone App Store' is suing Apple over antitrust claims
Cydia claims that Apple used its monopoly position of the App Store to push it out and ultimately render the jailbreaking store useless.
Cydia vs Apple
Another lawsuit that parallels Epic Games' claims that Apple has a monopoly position has surfaced. Cydia says that it was forced to close its doors due to Apple's unlawful control of app distribution on iOS.
Cydia also claims that had it not been for Apple's anticompetitive practices, users would benefit from a multitude of software that does not exist on iOS today. The lawsuit declares that Apple should allow third-party app stores and alternative software sources on its platforms.
The outcry is similar to Epic Games own lawsuit stating that Apple charging a "tax" and controlling the software distributed on its platform is an unlawful monopoly and should be stopped. Early hearings did not show much hope for Epic's case, as the preliminary judge was not impressed by the information provided. The next stage of the Epic lawsuit will be held in court July 2021.
Cydia was created as a jailbreak tool before Apple implemented the App Store on the iPhone. The tool acted as a sort of early app store with games and tools like copy and paste that did not exist on iPhone yet. The Washington Post estimates around 4.5 million users were accessing Cydia for apps in its heyday.
Jay Freeman, founder of Cydia, says that if you own a device you should be able to access every part of it and control the software however you like. He called jailbreaking a "vital tool" for iPhone users.
"Morally speaking, it's your phone and you should be able to do whatever you want with it," Freeman said. "You should get to decide which applications you put on it, and you should be able to decide where you get those applications from."
Apple ultimately patched every exploit and made it nearly impossible for tools like Cydia to be viable to the average user. The lawsuit suggests that Apple used loaded language to convince users that jailbreaking was dangerous and tools like Cydia would reduce the safety and security of your iPhone. Freeman claims these are falsehoods used to manipulate users.
Freeman said that Cydia earned $10 million at its peak in 2011 to 2012. Cydia earned its money by charging its app developers a fee for access to the Cydia store. The Apple App Store gained steam and ended up taking all of Cydia's potential income.
Cydia has hired the same lawyers used in the Samsung vs Apple patent case, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart and Sullivan. Epic Games opened the door for such lawsuits to exist, and this could be the last time they can challenge Apple on the matter.
The lawsuit demands a trial by jury, something that Epic Games chose to avoid, and seeks to be reimbursed for damages and fees. This would mean calculating all of the potential money lost due to not being able to operate on iOS properly since as early as 2012.
In a response to the Washington Post's queries, Apple reiterated that it is not a monopoly and has competitors in the market like Google's Android, and that Apple is in the best position to tightly manage what software is available on its platform. Apple has always taken a strong stance on privacy and security, and opening up its platform to third-party app stores would undermine its ability to keep users safe.
Apple has tried keeping regulators happy by taking steps to appease developers. The company introduced the ability for developers to challenge Apple's own regulations, and has reduced its fee from 30% to 15% for any developer earning less than $1 million per year.
Cydia vs Apple
Another lawsuit that parallels Epic Games' claims that Apple has a monopoly position has surfaced. Cydia says that it was forced to close its doors due to Apple's unlawful control of app distribution on iOS.
Cydia also claims that had it not been for Apple's anticompetitive practices, users would benefit from a multitude of software that does not exist on iOS today. The lawsuit declares that Apple should allow third-party app stores and alternative software sources on its platforms.
The outcry is similar to Epic Games own lawsuit stating that Apple charging a "tax" and controlling the software distributed on its platform is an unlawful monopoly and should be stopped. Early hearings did not show much hope for Epic's case, as the preliminary judge was not impressed by the information provided. The next stage of the Epic lawsuit will be held in court July 2021.
Cydia was created as a jailbreak tool before Apple implemented the App Store on the iPhone. The tool acted as a sort of early app store with games and tools like copy and paste that did not exist on iPhone yet. The Washington Post estimates around 4.5 million users were accessing Cydia for apps in its heyday.
Jay Freeman, founder of Cydia, says that if you own a device you should be able to access every part of it and control the software however you like. He called jailbreaking a "vital tool" for iPhone users.
"Morally speaking, it's your phone and you should be able to do whatever you want with it," Freeman said. "You should get to decide which applications you put on it, and you should be able to decide where you get those applications from."
Apple ultimately patched every exploit and made it nearly impossible for tools like Cydia to be viable to the average user. The lawsuit suggests that Apple used loaded language to convince users that jailbreaking was dangerous and tools like Cydia would reduce the safety and security of your iPhone. Freeman claims these are falsehoods used to manipulate users.
Freeman said that Cydia earned $10 million at its peak in 2011 to 2012. Cydia earned its money by charging its app developers a fee for access to the Cydia store. The Apple App Store gained steam and ended up taking all of Cydia's potential income.
Cydia has hired the same lawyers used in the Samsung vs Apple patent case, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart and Sullivan. Epic Games opened the door for such lawsuits to exist, and this could be the last time they can challenge Apple on the matter.
The lawsuit demands a trial by jury, something that Epic Games chose to avoid, and seeks to be reimbursed for damages and fees. This would mean calculating all of the potential money lost due to not being able to operate on iOS properly since as early as 2012.
In a response to the Washington Post's queries, Apple reiterated that it is not a monopoly and has competitors in the market like Google's Android, and that Apple is in the best position to tightly manage what software is available on its platform. Apple has always taken a strong stance on privacy and security, and opening up its platform to third-party app stores would undermine its ability to keep users safe.
Apple has tried keeping regulators happy by taking steps to appease developers. The company introduced the ability for developers to challenge Apple's own regulations, and has reduced its fee from 30% to 15% for any developer earning less than $1 million per year.
Cydia Versus Apple by Mike Wuerthele on Scribd
Comments
Again, Microsoft does not have a monopoly position over Windows. It has a monopoly position in Desktop Computer Operating Systems.
Google does not have a monopoly in google.com, they have a monopoly in Internet search engines.
The difference is that there’s nothing wrong with controlling what you create and own, but there is a huge issue when you try and take control of a “free” market.
Cydia was a legitimate app store in the same sense as the Rolex sales representative you used to find at every street corner.
it’s amusing, in a way. We can look to Android as a comparison. There are stores other than the Google Play store, to be sure, which is one reason given as to why Android is so “open”. But what is everyone advised to do by almost everyone who writes about these things for Android users? Only use the Google Play store for security reasons and piracy reasons. So here we have writers and security experts advising to never use any of those independent stores, just as it was advised to not use Cydia.
sooo...
What a crazy world.
Apple does not OWN the platform, since they sell it to me and do not rent it. None of these EULAs have been tested in court really. Note that Apple continues to tell me what I can do with something I have purchased. No one would accept this logic in a car; here's the only parts, oil, and gas you are permitted to use. Or how about a lightbulb; you can only use it with the light fixtures that I make, or vice-versa.
How about selling a refrigerator and then saying that it is monitored and will shut down if you buy certain foods that aren't on the approved list?
I'm an Apple user, and even an admin for a company that predominantly uses Apple. I'm very submerged in their ecosystem, but that doesn't mean I have to defend all of their behaviors. This all harkens back to a few years ago when everyone who is defending Apple right now was up in arms because Sony started going after hackers who modded their PS systems to run linux.
Also, everyone can remember a few years ago when it wasn't a government regulation that once you had paid off a cell phone, that the original carrier, at their own option, could keep it locked to the network. Now, once you own it, you own it and a carrier can't tell you that you have to use their service. You can't call Verizon, AT&T, or T-Mobile a monopoly, but they CAN engage in anti-competitive behavior that freezes out smaller businesses in the same space.
The simple basis is this: All of these devices are computing platforms and laws have to be universal for computing platforms. Either platforms need to remain open so that you have a right to do with a hardware platform as you please, or we have to agree that all computing platforms can be locked down and companies are allowed to dictate how their product is used after you purchase it.
there’s also a difference in the way the law treats a person who has bought a product, and a third party who is attempting to subvert that product for their own monetary purposes.
Yes, the PURPOSE as stated by Cydia wasn’t to steal apps. But a very large percentage of apps on Cydia were pirated. Cydia did nothing, or at most, very little to take those apps down, because while pirating apps wasn’t the purpose, it was a major way in which the platform was used. Malware was abundant there as well. Particularly as jailbroken phones lost most of the protections Apple had built in, and so Cydia was the perfect place to insert them into what people often thought were pirated apps.
there was little positive about Cydia, even if a few people did gain some small benefit. Most of those benefits weren’t of great benefit, just minor convenience.