The idea that the App Store (with 2M+ apps) is a meaningful source of customer acquisition is utter horseshit. In fact it's now the opposite since Apple will sometimes place ads for competitor apps ahead of your own in search results.
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I don’t think the App Store is the source of customer acquisition. I think being able to sell on iOS devices is the source of customer acquisition. Being able to upsell a user to your premium service right there on the device is the valuable thing that costs a premium.
The App Store is a marketplace that connects people developing for a platform (iOS) to customers using devices compatible with that platform. It is also the only marketplace that does this. In this way, it is best thought of as a (monopolistic) distribution channel.
Like it feels wrong to punish a company for not closing their platform like consoles do to any only working with a few select partners.