Apple has set up alternative app stores and third-party payments in Japan similar to how it is handled in the EU, but developers say it has “no economic motivation” and does not want to pay Apple anything.
The ongoing spat between Apple, Epic and Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers has led to a court order forcing Apple to allow external payments without charging a commission. While this is invoked in the US, developers in Japan want similar treatment.
According to a report from Japanese newsseven IT-related industry groups, including more than 600 companies, issued a statement asking Apple and Google to remove the new commissions. These are the ones for alternative app marketplaces and externally linked purchases that were enforced by the Mobile Software Competition Act (MSCL).
Instead of the usual 30% or 15% commissions that Apple charges for using in-app purchases in the App Store, developers in Japan could choose different fees between 5% and 21% based on the services they choose to use or not. When paired with credit card processing fees, the result was a more convoluted system that could end up being as expensive or more expensive than Apple’s built-in system.
Developers in the EU have similar complaints.
Apple isn’t about to change its tune
Apple says it’s a cost of doing business and a result of shunning the App Store they built to streamline sales. The company believes that every developer who distributes apps in their ecosystem, whether they use the App Store or a payment processor or not, owes them something.
Commissions from the App Store are a tiny part of Apple’s business, which it fights fiercely for
Every time Apple’s commission has been challenged in court, there has been a near-universal consensus that Apple deserves the fees for access to its ecosystem. However, how much to charge and how to collect it has proven to be quite debatable.
The developers filing the complaint in Japan would like to pay nothing, citing a court order in the United States as the reason. They claim that American developers are given an unfair advantage compared to Japanese developers.
While that’s technically true for now, that injunction will likely be overturned at some point and we’ll be back to square one. All of this negative attention and constant regulation is ultimately the result of Apple’s inflexibility to move away from an outdated commission system that is unfair to some participants.
If this constant back and forth is never going to end, Apple needs to step back from all the noise and develop a solution separate from regulators. Build something that recognizes that it deserves a commission, make it simple, and give developers the ability to compete on merit.
If the Apple App Store and payment system is truly better and better for users, let that speak for itself. Let’s end this convoluted, aggressive compliance and get back to safely and economically acquiring customer software.