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The launch of Apple’s new AR/VR headset, the Apple Vision ProIt may be making headlines this week, but the company is also facing harsh criticism from some of the other biggest companies in the tech sector.
Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg is the latest big tech CEO to speak out against Apple’s new App Store policies. Zuckerberg joins the heads of Spotify, Xbox, epic gamesand many other app developers for criticizing Apple for these moves over the past week.
A new EU law called the Digital Markets Act (DMA) will soon come into force. Under the mandate, companies like Apple cannot prevent alternative marketplaces from distributing apps on their consumer devices. For Apple, this means allowing users to download unapproved apps through these App Store alternatives.
For many developers, this could have been a great new opportunity. For example, Epic Games announced shortly after Apple announced these rules that Fortnite would return to the iPhone in the EU due to DMA. Apple previously removed Fortnite from its App Store in 2020 after Epic Games implemented a workaround for users to purchase Fortnite’s in-game currency without paying the usual revenue share for in-app purchases to Apple.
Under the DMA, Epic Games could distribute Fortnite on iPhones without going through the App Store and without giving a share of the revenue to Apple.
However, Apple has implemented a new system for developers looking to take advantage of these DMA changes, charging them for each app download, over a million installs each year.
Additionally, other new policies also make it restrictive for developers who want to use alternative marketplaces. For example, to launch an alternative marketplace, Apple requires a “letter of credit from an A-rated financial institution of €1,000,000 to establish adequate financial means to guarantee support to its developers and users.”
Zuckerberg criticizes Apple
Unless a developer already has massive income, and If Apple’s App Store review process needs to be bypassed, like Epic Games and Fortnite, the company will likely earn less from its apps under Apple’s new system.
Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged this on a call This week we look back at the company’s Q4 2023 earnings. And he didn’t mince words when talking about how he felt about Apple’s new DMA-based policies.
“I don’t think the Apple thing is going to make any difference for us because I think the way they’ve implemented it, I would be very surprised if any developer decided to enter the alternative app stores that they have,” Zuckerberg said. “They’ve made it so onerous and, I think, so contrary to the intent of the EU regulation that I think it’s going to be very difficult for anyone, including ourselves, to really seriously consider what they’re doing there.”
As Zuckerberg points out, the EU law was intended to combat anti-competitive practices by companies like Apple. However, Apple is using the law to institute policies that will end up being even more costly for developers whom the DMA was intended to benefit.
Facebook Delivery courier, instagram, Threadsand WhatsApp are currently available in the official Apple App Store. Some of Meta’s apps, like Facebook and Instagram, offer in-app purchases, meaning Apple takes a cut of up to 30 percent of those transactions.
But unlike Fortnite, which wanted to avoid Apple’s revenue cut so it could pass the discount on to its users, Meta simply charges users more to purchase products like Meta Verified through the app to cover Apple’s share. With that model, as Zuckerberg claims, it makes no sense to pull your apps from the App Store and pay Apple for each user who downloads your free iOS apps.
Still, given that Apple’s new policy won’t affect Meta, it’s interesting to hear Zuckerberg join the chorus of voices opposing it.
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