China Regulator To Review Apple Antitrust Complaint (bloomberg.com)

China's State Administration for Industry and Commerce is reviewing an antitrust complaint accusing Apple of abusing its dominant position in smartphone applications, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. From the report: The regulator is studying the information following a complaint filed on behalf of developers before deciding if a formal investigation is necessary, said the people, who asked not to be named because the matter isn't public. The review is preliminary and Chinese antitrust agencies usually review such information before deciding whether a official probe is needed. Beijing-based law firm Daxiao, or Dare & Sure, said earlier this month it filed complaints on the developers' behalf to the SAIC and the National Development and Reform Commission. The lawyers accused Apple of removing apps without a proper explanation and taking an excessive 30 percent cut of in-app transactions, it said in an Aug. 8 statement. The law firm now represents close to 50 developers, producing games and a number of other apps, according to Lin Wei, managing partner of Dare & Sure.

Comments

trustworthy and unbiased

[XXongo]

I'm sure that the Chinese regulatory agencies are completely trustworthy and unbiased, so we can be sure that there are no hidden motives of the Chinese government here.

Any different from Google?

[Midnight Thunder]

Isn't this the same type of conditions that Google applies for Android on the PlayStore? I am not saying this makes Apple innocent, just that this seems to be generally the same across mobile platforms.

This page says this about Android apps:

For applications and in-app products that you offer on Google Play, the transaction fee is equivalent to 30% of the price.

You receive 70% of the payment. The remaining 30% goes to the distribution partner and operating fees.

Heck, when a developer sold an app via the old brick and mortar stores, they were probably lucky to get 50%.

Re:Any different from Google?

[tlhIngan]

Isn't this the same type of conditions that Google applies for Android on the PlayStore? I am not saying this makes Apple innocent, just that this seems to be generally the same across mobile platforms.

Which is why Google Play is not available in China.

What is available in China are tons of app stores, and practically all of them are infested with crap. Not just pirated apps, but pirated apps laced with all sorts of malware.

You look up the next Android malware thing, and even if it doesn't affect the Play store, you can bet it's rampant on Chinese Android devices because the Chinese app stores are even worse at patrolling their stores. Hell, outside of the Play store, China is probably where all the malware lives (no Play store, everyone uses crappy app stores...).

Apple doesn't have a smartphone app monopoly

[cant_get_a_good_nick]

It has an iPhone app store monopoly.

Apple is in a weird position here. People actually spend money on iOS apps because they trust the store. People only trust Apple App Store because Apple exerts control over it. This suit wants people to buy their apps, but to destroy the control Apple has that makes people actually trust sending money to developers.

Re:Apple doesn't have a smartphone app monopoly

[alvinrod]

The easy solution is to allow for other app stores to exist outside of Apple's official store. People can still trust the apps they get from Apple and their store and are under no requirement to use some other store to purchase their apps.

I can see Apple being against this because they want to control the whole platform and user experience. Having previously done tech support I can understand Apple's position that users are bloody stupid and shouldn't be trusted with anything. Unfortunately there's no easy or quick way to determine if someone is capable of making those kinds of decisions, so it just becomes a platform choice. If you want the freedom to choose for yourself and are willing to accept the consequences of that, get an Android phone instead.

Re:Apple doesn't have a smartphone app monopoly

[DontBeAMoran]

If users are so bloody stupid that shouldn't be trusted with anything, you wouldn't even give them a sheet of paper otherwise they might cut themselves and bleed to death.

Re:Apple doesn't have a smartphone app monopoly

[OYAHHH]

> If you want the freedom to choose for yourself and are willing to accept the consequences of that, get an Android phone instead.

For now....

Re:Apple doesn't have a smartphone app monopoly

[Anonymous Coward]

Apple trusts its users. It does not trust app developers. Big difference.

And given the vast amount of malware written for Android compared to iOS, I'd say they have a good point.

Re:Apple doesn't have a smartphone app monopoly

[_merlin]

It isn't about buying applications, it's about Apple saying that peer-to-peer payments count as in-app purchases. WeChat/QQ/etc. allow you to send money or pay for purchases with a wallet tied to your account. They charge no commission on this (same business model as zero-commission travellers' cheques - TenCent can use the rather significant total amount of money that everyone has in their WeChat wallets at any given time). Apple wants a 30% cut of all these transactions. They may have written themselves out of the Chinese mobile market with this - WeChat payment is really popular.

Re:VPN?

[GrabbaTheButt]

I believe they removed them to comply with Chinese law rather than "pressure". I'm sure there will be much dismay of this action but whether you like it or not, if you are going to do business in China ... or any other country you need to comply with their laws whether you agree with them or not.