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Once Again, Apple Isn't Following Its Own Advertising Rules (theverge.com)

Posted by msmash on from the my-way-or-highway dept.

Apple News Plus, the company's new magazine (and news) subscription service, is the latest offender because of how easy Apple makes it to subscribe. From a report: Just tap that "Try it Free" button, confirm your payment, and you're off to the races. Thing is, Apple forbids developers from making things seem quite this simple. Typically, Apple protects users from recurring fees by requiring developers to make those numbers so large on the screen that it's painfully obvious what you're getting into, how often you'll pay, and how to cancel if you decide you're not interested anymore. Here are some screenshots from Apple's dev website so you can see just how crystal-clear the developer "guidelines" are. For whatever reason, Apple decided that a cleaner, more attractive layout, one that hides some of the information it asks of developers, was the right choice for Apple News Plus.

44 comments

  1. Privacy first by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The bose if tech. Nothing they say is trustworthy anymore. Promises are never kept

    1. Re:Privacy first by fluffernutter · · Score: 1

      Business class of 2017: lie and don't get caught,
      Business class of 2018: lie, lie, and don't get caught
      Business class of 2019: lie, lie, lie and don't get caught
      ...

      --
      Laws are rules for the court, but merely a bottom bar to hit for life. Think beyond laws in your actions always.
    2. Re: Privacy first by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      OMG! I gotta call the Genius Bar!

    3. Re:Privacy first by green1 · · Score: 1

      It's obvious you've never been to business class. These people stopped caring if they got caught a decade ago or more. It's now lie, lie, lie, employ enough lawyers and politicians to deal with any consequences, lie, lie, lie some more.

    4. Re:Privacy first by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Business class of 2020: Lie, lie, lie, don't worry about getting caught, we've noticed it has no impact on sales. Apparently people expect to be lied to by everyone anyway, so they don't care if you do it.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    5. Re:Privacy first by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      It is obvious that you never been to business class either.
      At least not the same classes I went to.
      I took my MBA in post Enron, and there was a huge push towards ethics in all the classes.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    6. Re:Privacy first by green1 · · Score: 1

      So what happens after graduation? because ethics doesn't seem to play any part in the operation of any major company at this point.

    7. Re:Privacy first by Anubis+IV · · Score: 2

      This has nothing to do with privacy. This is about price transparency.

      It's about how prices are displayed to the user before they sign up for a subscription. Apple requires App Store developers to disclose subscription prices in prominently displayed, plainly written text before the user is ever prompted with the confirmation dialog. In contrast, what Apple itself is doing is showing no pricing info at all until the user reaches the confirmation dialog. The user will still see the amount, but they won't see it until much later than they would in the workflow of any other app in the App Store. And while Apple isn't legally or contractually held to the same standard to which they hold App Store developers, it's a bad look for a company to engage in sliminess that they wouldn't allow of others.

      Hopefully they fix the screen in response to the bad PR, because fixing it is the right thing to do, but we'll see what happens.

    8. Re: Privacy first by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      MBA ethics: will it stand up in court?

      https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lBUJcD6Ws6s

    9. Re:Privacy first by LynnwoodRooster · · Score: 1

      Business is just trying to catch up with celebrities and government officials...

      --
      Browsing at +1 - no ACs, I ignore their posts. So refreshing!
    10. Re: Privacy first by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That might be true, but it is also the most ignored class.

    11. Re:Privacy first by thomn8r · · Score: 1

      IThese people stopped caring if they got caught a century ago or more

      FTFY

  2. The Only Mammals That Eat Apple Shit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Are horses and humans. Dumb fucks!

  3. They do the same shit with iCloud by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    I "accidentally" signed up for that shit on my iPhone while trying to dismiss a nag screen. Sad to see Apple incorporating "dark patterns" into their much ballyhooed interface design. Maybe Tim Cook should go.

    1. Re:They do the same shit with iCloud by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      could be a lot worse
      they could sign you up for creimer's videos

    2. Re:They do the same shit with iCloud by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So your :"accident" was actually your laziness in reading? I admit, it could have been underhanded in layout but I'm really sick of this entitled attitude that someone should be blaring trumpets and flashing lights to save you from yourselves. Be an adult.

    3. Re: They do the same shit with iCloud by reanjr · · Score: 1

      Mixing payment confirmation with nag messages is pretty much the definition of a dark pattern. Most of us don't have as much time on our hands as it appears you do, to read every message unilaterally and rudely sent to us.

    4. Re:They do the same shit with iCloud by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Have you seen creimer's newest video featuring Alien 40th Anniversary "Ripley in Underwear" Funko POP!?

    5. Re:They do the same shit with iCloud by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You realize with FaceID if you are simply looking at the screen of your phone that you essentially have authorized it to buy anything right?

  4. I don't trust Apple by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Their policy of "you can make anything except stuff that competes with our stuff" is what keeps me away from Apple and others with similar policies like Visual Studio

    1. Re: I don't trust Apple by mSparks43 · · Score: 1

      at least microsoft allow you to make money. if you get a successful app on an apple platform they will release their own competitor and then kick you off for competing with them.

    2. Re: I don't trust Apple by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Microsoft allows you because it's a bit hard for them to stop you right now. They've had similar policies before that they were forced to ease up on, but still keep anticompetitive clauses in VS as pointed out by parent

    3. Re: I don't trust Apple by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Microsoft allows you because it's a bit hard for them to stop you right now. They've had similar policies before that they were forced to ease up on, but still keep anticompetitive clauses in VS as pointed out by parent

      What anti-competitive clauses? The parent didn't point out anything at all.

    4. Re: I don't trust Apple by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You can't make products that compete with MS Office in VS according to the EULA, this is well known

  5. burn ur iphone then faggit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0


     

  6. "free" trial by stealth_finger · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I don't sign up to free trials that want payment details in advance, so generally I don't get free trials.

    --
    Wanna buy a shirt?
    https://www.redbubble.com/people/stealthfinger/shop?asc=u
    1. Re: "free" trial by sremick · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Just use an empty Visa/MC gift card that still had an unexpired date. I'm always getting them from rebates and crap, so I always keep the numbers from an unexpired one handy just for stuff like this.

    2. Re: "free" trial by ewibble · · Score: 2

      Gift cards are another rip off, give them some money and it expires. The reason they state it needs to expire is they don't want a liability on their books. Next time you go into a bank tell that the mortgage has expired after 2 years because you don't want that liability on our books see what they say. Just give cash, no fees, no expiry.

    3. Re:"free" trial by epine · · Score: 1

      I don't sign up to free trials that want payment details in advance, so generally I don't get free trials.

      Same here. But I generally regard this as a feature, not a bug. If they need your payment details just to give you a taste, the taste is almost certainly bitter in the end.

    4. Re:"free" trial by stealth_finger · · Score: 1

      If they need your payment details just to give you a taste, the taste is almost certainly bitter in the end.

      Exactly!

      --
      Wanna buy a shirt?
      https://www.redbubble.com/people/stealthfinger/shop?asc=u
  7. misleading article and flame bait by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    I signed up for the trail, and was adequately warned that it was a paid subscription, when it would kick in, and how to cancel. Many third party developers do not do this, which is why Apple makes it very clear how to warn customers. Apple isn't in the business of scamming people unlike some third party app developers, so yes, the burden of proof is a bit higher on the third party dev side than it is on Apple's side. Stop bitching.

  8. So don't sign up by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    But you know you will because you secretly like Apple. Nerds.

    1. Re:So don't sign up by Anubis+IV · · Score: 1

      Why would nerds—Apple fanboys or not—sign up? We already have RSS clients configured to our tastes and preferences. I see no reason to pay a middleman $10/mo. for a small subset of the things that I can already get for free, just as easily, directly from the source.

  9. Re:still better than android by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    That's like saying the dump I took today is better than the one I took yesterday.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  10. "Free trials" with payment required are not free by Opportunist · · Score: 3, Informative

    Any "free trials" that want your payment details in advance are not free trials, they're a subscription waiting to bite you in the ass. And since Apple pretty much has your payment details already as soon as you are one of their victims, there is no such thing as a free trial from Apple, period.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  11. Seems they comply by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    While i dislike apple, reading their actual requirements, it seems their own app does fulfill those:

    Include the following in the app description and in your app’s signup screen:
    o Subscription name, duration, and the content or services provided during each subscription period
    o The following information about how users are charged and can manage the subscription:
    oo Payments are charged to the user’s Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase.
    oo Subscriptions automatically renew unless the user cancels at least 24 hours before the end of the current period.
    oo The account is charged for renewal within 24-hours before the end of the current period.
    oo Users can manage and cancel subscriptions in their account settings on the App Store.
    o A link to your app’s Terms of Use

  12. Dark Patterns by 0ld_d0g · · Score: 1

    Both Apple and Google continue to follow dark patterns to trick the user into subscribing for their shitty services. Nearly everytime I start up youtube or itunes on my phone, I get the nagscreen popup for itunes radio or YT "premium" that does not have the "No, and don't ask me ever again" option.

  13. Google doesn't follow its own rules either by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    For instance, Google demands every website owner have a responsive website with the same content or the site gets dinged in search results.

    But Google Search, Google Images, YouTube, etc. are not responsive. Go run a search on desktop and shrink the screen. On a mobile device and browsers that emit mobile user agent strings, you get redirected to a mobile version of the site with less content.

  14. makes an really good case to kill app store lockin by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

    makes an really good case to kill app store lock-in. In the EU that may lead to some big smack down.

  15. Scam artististry will lose customers by omfglearntoplay · · Score: 1

    Seriously Apple, think about this. You are the richest company around. Do you need to become a shifty, lying cheat to survive? Do you think your reputation might get smeared a little, which will tank your business?

    1. Re: Scam artististry will lose customers by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You've clearly not been paying attention to their business habits for the past several years

  16. Fuck apple.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    a total cancer in the tech industry.