spheric

timpetus said:

neelypeely said:

I live in the UK and support Apple in this. They should pull out of the eurozone market, to hell with whatever financial loss that incurs. And people wonder why we voted for Brexit!?

Right you are! I totally understood Brexit and never heard an argument against it that made any sense. 

Javert24601 said:

Wesley Hilliard said:

neoncat said:

Mr. Hilliard, you're a fine writer and I enjoy your articles. But your increasing need to challenge readers with parochial arguments in the comments is a bad look (not that my opinion matters, of course.)

I have no real skin in this game—I don't live in the EU. I tend to like more open systems than more closed, but I get the advantages Apple's approach brings, even if it also brings tremendous baggage and restrictions that deserve to be challenged. More importantly, however: Dominos have an interesting way of continuing to fall. The longer Apple digs in its heels, the less control it will have over outcomes. Which is such classic Apple behavior: Kick and scream until the terms are fully dictated and then they have zero chance to represent their viewpoint, whether on behalf of their customers or their own financial goals. They should let go of the App Store before the whole thing, bad *and* good, gets burned to the ground. 

Nothing I said contradicts what you said here. I'm not sure what you mean by saying my posts are some kind of church gospel. As I've said on Bluesky and other places, more than one thing can be true.

Apple digging in its heels isn't great. It's in a troublesome issue of its own making. However, the EU is overstepping by making demands it doesn't always seem to understand. Compel Apple to open up, but on its terms and timeline. Don't force hastily made changes that could be compromising to users.

My comment was directed at the original poster's comment about envying alternative app stores, which I do not. I'm happy that regulations enabled things like emulators without much trouble, but asking Apple to destroy its business model to make way for competitors that can't keep up, now that's an issue.

People like me that buy Apple for the closed ecosystem of products like that it's built on privacy and security first, then opened up in certain ways to allow more third-party interaction later. It's time for Apple to allow more smart watch functionality outside of Apple Watch, for example. But asking Apple to open up AirPlay and other proprietary systems is incredibly short sighted.

What's the point of competition if the EU regulates all the competitors to operate identically. That's not user choice, that's the kind of dystopia where all the brands in the store have been removed in the name of equality. I don't want to have an Android phone, so I didn't buy one. I don't want the EU to force Apple to make iOS into Android.

That said, regulations are helpful in pushing companies into making consumer-friendly decisions.

See, more than one thing can be true. In this case, I think the EU is pushing too far. I'm sure some compromise will be made and consumers will ultimately benefit.

Thank you.  I agree with what you wrote.  I think the free market does work, so if another smart watch were selling well, I suspect Apple would support it.

anonymouse said:

And furthermore, this sort of protectionist racket feeds into the sort of right wing politics that are destroying Europe and America, so the net "benefit" will be negative for everyone.

anonymouse said:

sirdir said:

Wow, I wasn’t aware the comment section here is full of MAGA and trillion-dollar-company-simps. 
If Apple can’t follow the law, they will be fined and that’s the way it should be. 
Maybe they’ll even have to do what’s best for the customer instead what’s best for them, imagine. The horrors!

I'm about as far from a MAGA or trillion-dollar-company-simp as one can get, but it's been pretty obvious for quite a while what Europe's game is in regard to American tech companies. And, none of this is even remotely about what's best for the customer, it's about what's best for European governments, European companies, European advertisers and European spy agencies.

TravisV said:

and here lays a problem that the EU still hasn't come to grips with and will eventually with the Trump Administration. The more you fine a company such as Apple the harsher the penalty from the Administration. Canada and France are going to find out in the not to distant future that imposing "digital services taxes on American companies is frowned on by Trump.