Did anyone actually think Epic was pro-consumer in any way?
Epic: Google is bad!
Google: Epic is bad too! They're only looking out for themselves.
Google is saying Epic is selfish as well, and it wants an opening only for itself to make money.
Google and Epic, please cry harder.
I think that’s a secondary effect. The primary reason is so Epic gets to keep all the money it makes on digital purchases, which is pretty much all margin for them.
And any pretense that Epic is doing this for anyone other than, or in addition to, Epic went out the window during the Apple trial when Sweeney admitted on the stand that had Apple offered Epic, and only Epic, a sweetheart deal, he would’ve gladly taken it in a heartbeat.
Why shouldn't he? Doesn't mean he can't sue.
While it’s perfectly fine for him to sue, I think it’s extremely disingenuous for him to make that huge PR push about how he’s standing up for the common developer and then admit on the stand that he’s perfectly happy to let the common developer continue to twist in the wind as long as he gets his pay-off.
In that sense, Google’s post did get one thing right — Epic’s only interested in itself; any impact for anybody else, positive or negative, is just incidental.
I don't observe any pretense that Epic is doing any of this _for the greater good_. Epic is correct in that what they want to see change can benefit others.
Epic deserves all the money they make from digital purchases. They shouldn't have to share 30% of _every_ transaction with app stores just because the creators of those app stores force everyone to use them. It can be both. It's not wrong for Epic to support changes that also happen to benefit everyone while also prioritizing their own goals.
No, but it’s wrong for Epic to position those changes as part of a battle to ensure everybody gets their money, and then admit on the stand that they were perfectly happy to let everybody else to continue to get screwed over as long as they (Epic) got their cash.
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https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/30/23962920/epic-just-admit...
"The Coalition for App Fairness is an independent nonprofit organization founded by industry-leading companies to advocate for freedom of choice and fair competition across the app ecosystem."
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https://www.imore.com/epic-games-would-have-accepted-special...
Lawyer: If Apple had told you that it would offer you a deal and no other developers, would you have accepted that?
Sweeney: Yes, I would have.
Isn’t that what Google is doing here, publicly advocating one position (Epic are a bunch of selfish bastards) and privately advocating another (Google is entitled to screw over everybody else)? Why is Google selfish and Epic pragmatic for the exact same actions?
Ofcouse Epic wants to make more. So?
Good changes are good changes, we should judge them on their own merit regardless of who are pushing them.
Being 'sceptical' because the underdog is still a massive company thus we should give current leader (who is many times larger) a free pass, isn't really a skepticism, it's just irrational.
Candidly, Epic: https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2023/03/...
Epic isnt fighting for the consumer. Epic is fighting so they can fuck you in place of google.
I'm a mobile dev so they're actually helping me out a fair bit here, and the consumer as well. Right now I literally cannot tell you that Google and Apple are making me do a 30% surcharge
You're making more than a million a year as a mobile dev?
Because less than a mill, or for subscription services it's 15% from Apple.
Candidly if your a small team, 15% to not have to chase chargebacks on digital goods is a raw deal.
I'm under no illusion that Epic is doing this for any other reason than profit but that is structurally impossible. Google owns the OS, in my personal case makes the phone I use and runs about half of the essential services on it. The worst thing Epic can make me do is not to play Fortnite.
Anything that annoys Google and makes Epic happy is, given that dynamic, likely competition and market enhancing.
In this case, even if they were a morally bankrupt organization, they are doing something that in the end will benefit users.
We should be able to recognize that even if we don't like Epic.