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Comment by isostatic | Hacker News Reader

I use spotify and netflix without going through apple, the former on my linux desktop, the latter additionally on my smart tv.

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Problem is that Apple is actively trying to prevent that. They have no right to do that and are abusing the power they have in other areas to do it.

How are Apple trying to prevent people using Spotify or Netflix on smart TVs and Linux desktops?

I suspect spiderfarmer meant that Apple is trying to prevent "[Using] spotify and netflix without going through apple", at least on iOS.

How? I use Netflix on my iPad all the time and not once has Apple tried to stop me.

Netflix is not allowed to point people to their website from their App store description, which is absurd to me.

Apple is not "actively trying to prevent" people from managing their Spotify, Netflix et al subscriptions outside of their respective iOS apps, what are you talking about?

The app literally can't send you to the Web page so you can sign up there. It has to say something vague for Apple to approve it for publishing. Here's an example from Kobo [1]. They apparently can't even tell you the domain name.

[1] http://imgs.fyi/img/7hut.png

And how does that actively prevent people from using Spotify on their desktop?

Uh, Apple rejects your app if your app talks about being able to subscribe/upgrade via means other than IAP (includes desktop)

Reads to me like you have to get in a different car to shop at those other stores because one of your cars only drives to one store.

its about payment not app store lock in. there is nothing wrong with paying by browser and not via the appstore besides convenience. your car does come with a 'buy new tires' button but you can still go to the store and pay with cash.

You can't carry neither your TV nor your desktop on the go with you like you can with your smartphone.

But just like my TV and my desktop computer, I've paid for my phone with cash. Its mine. Just like my PC, I don't owe Apple Computers any extra money in exchange for the privilege to install apps like spotify on my device. The benefit of having access to the app store is already factored into the (quite high) price I paid for my phone.

True, but a counter argument could be that Apple has created the ability of your phone to have apps installed on it. And I’m theory you could jailbreak your phone and install any app you’d want.

Sure; but I paid $1000 for my phone in part because of that capability. My phone would be worth less if I couldn't install apps like spotify. And unlike a game console, app purchases aren't used to subsidise the phones. Its pure profit for apple.

And I wouldn't have a problem with that in general, except it feels dirty to claim Apple are saints for graciously allowing apps like spotify to be sold on their platform. They're already being paid for doing so through phone sales. Leveraging the monopoly they hold over the ios app store against Spotify, one of their competitors, is exactly what antitrust legislation is designed to prevent.

And the developers are paying a fee every year just to exist on the app store.

And if you can find a way to defeat it's security, you are free to do so. However being incredibly locked down and secure is one the the product's features. It's up to you if you still want the product, but that's how it comes.

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