How did we get from the attitude that web apps will be everything and native is backward to spending a lot of time concerned with App/Play Store monopolies?
I guess my question is, why do native apps suddenly matter so much?
I guess my question is, why do native apps suddenly matter so much?
Rightfully so: I, as a user, do not want the web to have anywhere near the functionality that Google grants it; and absolutely not without clear and explicit permission.
The unfortunate flip side is that native apps sidestep that whole paradigm anyway.
They've always mattered -- native vs web vs hybrid is a war going on much longer than iOS or Android OS.
Native apps matter because they have much better access to Apple hardware functionality on the phones like Apple Pay, GPS, Push Notifications, Persitent Storage, Accelerometer, Camera et cetera.
A good example is video games -- while WebGL is a thing the simple reality is AAA games need to run natively.