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Comment by baxtr | Hacker News Reader

From what I understand: The in-app experience is not changed for me as a user. It doesn’t make my standard app a better app. An ad is consumed by other people on many other devices including browsers on a desktop. So I think it’s very reasonable it’s not handled like an in-app purchase. It’s more like a purchase of a physical item in the amazon app.

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Thanks, I like this breakdown. It was why it was a big deal last week when Apple was trying to get 30% of WordPress hosting fees and then backed down and apologized.

Where it all falls apart: Apple recently targeted 30% of Airbnb's (and ClassPass') virtual experiences revenue. These experiences do not make the app itself better (others were saying here these are done via Zoom). It's a transaction to set up people performing for others (not a purely digital good) in another app like Zoom. It doesn't really change/improve the Airbnb app. ... But Apple aims to treat it as an in-app-purchase...

Unlike with the Wordpress controversy, Apple has not backed down or apologized to ClassPass/Airbnb, demanding both still comply with the 30% rule by year's end.

> as a user

As a user, are you buying ad placements on other people's news feeds? If so, I'd be very confused why you would continue to spend money on it (via your iPhone) if it doesn't change your experience as a user. I'd expect you to at least see some change, hopefully in the form of funds in your own paycheck.

Is there something special about users that buy ads that means Apple can't get a cut of their purchases, or that we don't consider them Facebook "users"?

Certainly it seems reasonable to me that Apple can have whatever business model they want. They want to charge for A and not B, so be it. They aren't the IRS or something.

I think the above comment was more about Facebook being somewhat hypocritical in complaining recently about the one time they do have to pay, despite the fact that in most of their business they don't.

Ads are a monetization method. I pay a company by consuming ads in their app. So this is definitely something Apple should charge for: it circumvents normal in-app payments.

So is ordering physical goods with the amazon app. As I outlined: ads don’t improve my in-app experience. They rather ruin other people’s experience somewhere else :-)

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