- cross-posted to:
- technology@beehaw.org
- cross-posted to:
- technology@beehaw.org
Maybe a step in the right direction towards a more free App Store?
Edit: Didn’t realize this was pay walled, sorry about that. I don’t think this one is: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/justice-department-sues-apple-alleging-it-illegally-monopolized-the-smartphone-market/ar-BB1kielV
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15 years too late
Frankly I was hoping they’d go after Ford for their unconscionable monopoly on the production of Mustangs.
Free the Pony!
Yeah come to think of it that title is poorly written
Yea the specific issue is
The department joined 16 states and the District of Columbia to file a significant challenge to the reach and influence of Apple, arguing in an 88-page lawsuit that the company had violated antitrust laws with practices that were intended to keep customers reliant on their iPhones and less likely to switch to a competing device. The tech giant prevented other companies from offering applications that compete with Apple products like its digital wallet, which could diminish the value of the iPhone, and hurts consumers and smaller companies that compete with it, the government said.
so that’s a good thing :)
“We need you to stop making a good product so your customers can finally move away from it.”
“We need you to stop
making a good productforcing your customers to only use your version so your customers can finally move away from it.” Fixed it. Non-apple watches, for instance, can’t use GPS from an iPhone or cause it to emit sound to local lost phones, despite being previously able to, demonstrating no technical limitations just a walled-garden limitationDo you happen to know why they removed that feature?
To keep their walled garden.
The officially given reason probably was “sEcUriTy”
Security is the main reason you should get an iPhone, tbh.
Is there an answer to that question that would make these practices reasonable? (while also being plausibly true)
Security.
The quality isn’t really the issue, it’s when the company
- prevents competing apps from being installed
- prevents devices from other manufacturers from using your apps (or intentionally degrading services on other devices)
- making it hard to use files/media outside the proprietary apps (ex. iTunes in the past, and maybe still now)
This issue isn’t limited to Apple, but Apple is the well known example for locking people into an ecosystem whether they like it or not
Do you have an example of them rejecting a quality product from being used in their phones?
Another big example is any web-browser that isn’t safari. That should be changing soon/recently (see here https://www.theverge.com/2024/1/25/24050478/apple-ios-17-4-browser-engines-eu) but that’s only because Apple was forced to.
Each developer will have to be authorized by Apple to switch engines “after meeting specific criteria and committing to a number of ongoing privacy and security mitigations,”
Now they can babysit other browsers and make sure they’re secure too, ig. Might as well throw that responsibility on the trillion dollar company. At least the browsers will end up more secure once the apple security team audits them.
You were already provided with examples in this comment thread:
Non-apple watches, for instance, can’t use GPS from an iPhone or cause it to emit sound to local lost phones, despite being previously able to, demonstrating no technical limitations just a walled-garden limitation
Which manufacturers and which products?
Just like how Windows Explorer was stopped because it was such a good product?
There was a lawsuit to remove Windows Explorer? Did you mean to say Internet Explorer?
I have no issues with Apple controlling the Iphone. That’s why I buy it. If I didn’t like it I could buy an android phone.
It’s not about you.
What is it about? Article is paywalled.
Apologies, I didn’t mean to post a paywalled article. I read several and this is just the one that I copied the link to. You can always look it up for yourself though
No worries, I appreciate the updated link
The golden cage is extra comfortable to you, huh?
If I didn’t want it, I wouldn’t have an Iphone. I would have something else.
Isn’t that the whole point of these antitrust cases?
Company makes a product that no one else makes. People like it and buy it. Product becomes popular. Company makes money. (That’s the reason for being in business, isn’t it?). Suddenly someone notices that the product, which no one else makes, has earned a whole lot of money for the company.
ThAt’s nOt fAiR, tHeY’Re tOo pOpUlAr, No oNe eLsE CaN CoMpEtE, wE NeEd tO BrEaK Up tHe cOmPaNy sO We cAn gRaB A SlIcE Of tHeIr pIe!
That’s not what this is about. It’s about Apple controlling it so heavily, that nobody can compete. Do you see any other Tap n Pay apps other than Apple Pay, for example? Why not? Because Apple are stifling competitors, which is illegal.
There’s also Google and Samsung pay, to be fair, but it’s not open to wider competition besides the biggest brands.
Better late than never I guess?
What does this have to do with privacy?
They don’t really have a monopoly. Android does exist and is doing quiet well.
If they adopt RCS then I would be concerned
The point is that iPhone users are locked into (or strongly penalized for not using) Apple services like Apple wallet and storage and other apple devices like apple watches or earbuds, rather than competing openly. My partner has an iPhone and the hoops we have to jump through to get some–not all–google photos, Fitbit, and Klipsch headphones features working is mindboggling. Apple watches also straight up wouldn’t work without another apple devices to phone home to last I checked. That’s the anticompetitive lawsuit
This may be a bad take but why did you buy a iPhone knowing it won’t work with anything else? It seems like there is at least some fault of the consumer. You have the freedom to buy what you want for the most part. I can’t help someone who can’t help themselves.
With that being said, it there isn’t any other options on the market then your point is completely valid
iPhone users aren’t a species, they’re human beings that don’t have to be iPhone users. Thanks to competition they are free to choose from a wide variety of other competitors.
This is the equivalent of saying that Walmart has a monopoly because Walmart customers are being forced to purchase items from within Walmart. That because Target isn’t allowed to set up a stall in Walmart, it’s a monopoly.
Once you are using a service, it shouldn’t be difficult to transfer away.
It’s like if Walmart required customers to add money to a Walmart card before they could shop. Customers would find it difficult to start shopping elsewhere
You and the point have never seen each other.
They’ve already announced they’re working on RCS support. Should be interesting to see how they adopt it considering the obstacles like adding encryption support, working through Google’s implementation, etc.
That’s a terrible standard to support, Google controls that and there are no RCS FOSS apps. They should instead use something like Matrix.
Does anyone have an archive link?
We ArE sUiNg YoU uNdEr RoBbEr-BaRoN lAwS bEcAuSe YoU aRe ThE oNlY mAnUfAcTuReR wHo MaKe DeCeNt PhOnEs ThAt PeOpLe WaNt!!?!
Sounds like someone is upset that they can’t get their citizen monitoring software on the majority of citizens phones.
Least insane apple fanboy
If you’d read the article it’s about Apple intentionally imposing restrictions that nobody else does, like not allowing getting apps out of their store and putting roadblocks for Android to support things like their messenger
The case is that they’re abusing their market lead by forcing people to stay on iPhones, all these restrictions Android/Google DOESN’T do
Hahaha.
Right, right, NSA et al aren’t using iOS to track people. They’re just buying the info via shell companies.
Not to mention you have pretty much no way to disable data collection by iOS and apps.
