Tech Press Clueless about Sony Reader Rejection
I’m a bit stunned to see articles like this, which are spreading across the web today, about Apple’s refusal of the Sony Reader iOS app. Started by the New York Times, the story claims that, “The company has told some applications developers, including Sony, that they can no longer sell content, like e-books, within their apps, or let customers have access to purchases they have made outside the App Store.”
But Apple has never let other apps sell such content directly. If you use the Kindle app, there’s a Shop in Kindle Store button that takes you to the Amazon web site via your web browser. While I can understand that the New York Times may blindly reproduce Sony’s comments without researching the story, I’m surprised that Mac web sites don’t open up their iPhones and see exactly how the Kindle and Nook apps work.
Update: So it turns out that it was not, indeed, that Apple was prohibiting in-app sales. They want to get everyone to do in-app sales, but take a cut. Follow-up from Macworld. I have to say, it’s really not clear what Apple wants to do here. I don’t see how they can expect publishers to be on board with an additional 30% cut, let alone the many other types of apps that let users access content they have paid for elsewhere.
You miss the key line of the NYT story.
“…or let customers have access to purchases they have made outside the App Store.”
If the NYT is correct about that line, it would mean that the apps like the Kindle could no longer function as they are currently functioning.
Now, perhaps the NYT got the story wrong. But if they are correct, it’s a big shift.
Assuming the NYT is correct, it’s yet another piece of evidence that current management in Cupertino has become relatively sociopathic over the past 3 years.
(After 20+ years on the platform, having management to completely happily avoid Windows the whole time, I bought a copy of Windows for the first time a few months ago, and am slowly learning it. For the first time in 20+ years, I distrust Redmond less than I distrust Cupertino…)
If Apple were to limit such features, that would mean than no app could download files. I think that’s something that Apple would not do. There are plenty of apps that use external files, the issue here is just the purchasing built into the app. I think the apocalyptic scenario is best avoided, especially since it’s based on a single comment from a company whose app was rejected.
“I think that’s something that Apple would not do.”
Apple has done a lot of things over the past 3 or so years that seem like things Apple would not do.
“I think the apocalyptic scenario is best avoided, especially since it’s based on a single comment from a company whose app was rejected.”
If you parse the NYT story closely, you’ll see that they are not just reacting to a single comment from Sony. They have multiple sources. And I tend to trust the NYT’s editorial judgment, though they obviously don’t get 100% of their stories correct.
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As far as apocalyptic scenarios go, I tend to expect apocalyptic scenarios out of Cupertino these days. I think things are pretty rotten at the core as of late. I’d greatly prefer to be wrong, as I have significant equipment, software, and knowledge investments in the OS X platform. But I’m hedging my bets away from Cupertino of late in a way that I didn’t even feel was necessary in the dark days of 1996…
(As stated, as of last year, I bought a copy of Windows for the first time so I can painfully learn it. I’ve moved my archival file formats away from OS X only formats – aka, goodbye .webarchive and hello .pdf. I’ve moved from Aperture to Bridge as my photo shoebox scheme. Etc, etc. There are too many tea leaves to ignore of late.)
No big surprise here. This is exactly what Apple has announced about magazine apps : they had previously allowed publishers to sell subscriptions independantly, via their websites (probably because Apple needed magazine apps for the launch of the iPad and their in-app purcase mechanism wasn’t ready).
Now Apple is closing the door and has given publishers until June 30th to switch to Apple’s Appstore in-app purchase mechanism. II wonder how this will work with joint paper/internet/iPad subscription offers (like Le Monde or Télérama in France…)
“No big surprise here. This is exactly what Apple has announced about magazine apps”
Well, it depends. The NYT article seems to imply that this will shut down the Kindle app on iOS, which would be a bit of a big surprise, as it would extend the ugly and indefensible (if expected) periodical walled garden into non-periodicals as well.
But we should wait until Amazon comments before drawing final conclusions on that topic.
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An American politician from the late 19th century once said: you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of a 30% cut to Cupertino on all commerce…