[OPLIN 4cast] OPLIN 4Cast #622: Is the Apple app store a monopoly?

[OPLIN OPLIN]

Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser.
<http://www.oplin.org/4cast/>
[image: OPLIN 4Cast]

OPLIN 4Cast #622: Is the Apple app store a monopoly?
November 28st, 2018

[image: tablet pc with lots of apps flying arround] Since the first
Macintosh came out and revolutionized how we interact with our computers,
there has been this truism: if you want the Apple software experience, you
have to buy Apple hardware. Nearly 44% of US smartphone sales
<https://www.pcmag.com/news/358840/70-8-percent-of-us-phones-sold-by-samsung-apple>
are iPhones, a statistic that is poised to rise as 82% of teens are iPhone
users <https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/iphone-use-teens-2018/>, and
even more say their next device will be an iPhone. Apple invented the App
Store, and with it, the modern app marketplace. If you have an iPhone (or
any iOS device) the only way to install apps is through the App Store; all
those apps must use Apple's purchase APIs for all digital transactions --
and Apple takes a 30% cut of all sales. (This is why you can't buy a Kindle
book or Audible audiobook within those apps on your iPhone.) A class action
lawsuit by an Apple customer and three other plaintiffs alleges this is a
monopoly allowing Apple to overcharge, and this week, they defended their
case before the Supreme Court.

What? You're not fascinated by legal hair-splitting? You don't care what
bearing a 40-year-old decision about brick manufacturing may have on how
you buy extra Poké Balls or Lures in Pokémon GO? Then check out a couple
other news items linked below about how to get money *back* from the Apple
App store, or what perils you might face from an app store without Apple's
strict controls.

   -
   - How Apple hopes to stop a customer lawsuit over its App Store monopoly
   <https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2018/11/how-apple-hopes-to-stop-a-customer-lawsuit-over-its-app-store-monopoly/>
   (*Ars Technica*) "In Apple's view, customers buy apps from developers,
   who turn around and pay Apple a 30 percent cut. That means that only the
   developers—not ordinary iPhone users—have standing to sue Apple."
   - Antitrust, the App Store, and Apple
   <https://stratechery.com/2018/antitrust-the-app-store-and-apple/> [
   *Stratechery*] "One of the more humorous aspect of yesterday’s oral
   arguments was the way discussion presumed that Apple was an abusive
   monopoly."
   - How to Get a Refund From the Apple App Store
   <https://www.howtogeek.com/396239/how-to-get-a-refund-from-the-apple-app-store/>
   [*How-To Geek*] "While Apple might not make a big deal about it, getting
   a refund from the App Store is not only possible, it’s pretty easy to do.
   Whether you’re requesting a refund for an in-app purchase or a whole app,
   the process is the same."
   - Make Sure You Didn't Download One of These Malicious Apps From Google
   Play
   <https://lifehacker.com/make-sure-you-didnt-download-one-of-these-malicious-app-1830662773>
   [*Lifehacker*] "More than 560,000 people reportedly downloaded them
   before they were taken out of the store, and two of the apps even made it
   to Google Play’s “trending” section before they were pulled, likely adding
   even more downloads. "

*From the Ohio Web Library <http://ohioweblibrary.org>:*

   - Johnson, Leif. “How the App Store Changed My World (and Probably
   Yours, Too)
   <https://proxy.oplin.org:2111/login.aspx?direct=true&db=buh&AN=131269095&site=ehost-live>
   .” *Macworld - Digital Edition*, vol. 35, no. 9, Sept. 2018, pp. 35–38.
   - Vijayan, Jaikumar. “Google Removes 145 Malware-Laden Apps From Play
   Store
   <https://proxy.oplin.org:2111/login.aspx?direct=true&db=buh&AN=131117216&site=ehost-live>
   .” *EWeek*, Aug. 2018, pp. 1–2.
   - Perkins, Todd. "Building Your First iOS App
   <https://www.lynda.com/iOS-tutorials/Building-Your-First-iOS-App/751325-2.html>
   ." *Lynda.com, *Sept 27, 2018.

------------------------------
The *OPLIN 4cast* is a weekly compilation of recent headlines, topics, and
trends that could impact public libraries. You can subscribe to it in a
variety of ways, such as:

   - *RSS feed.* You can receive the OPLIN 4cast via RSS feed by
   subscribing to the following URL:
   http://www.oplin.org/4cast/index.php/?feed=rss2.
   - *Live Bookmark.* If you're using the Firefox web browser, you can go
   to the 4cast website (http://www.oplin.org/4cast/) and click on the
   orange "radio wave" icon on the right side of the address bar. In Internet
   Explorer 7, click on the same icon to view or subscribe to the 4cast RSS
   feed.
   - *E-mail.* You can have the OPLIN 4cast delivered via e-mail (a'la
   OPLINlist and OPLINtech) by subscribing to the 4cast mailing list at
   http://lists.oplin.org/mailman/listinfo/OPLIN4cast.

© 2018 Ohio Public Library Information Network
[image: Find us on Slideshare] <http://www.slideshare.net/oplin>  [image:
Find us on Facebook] <http://www.facebook.com/oplin.org>  [image: Find us
on Google+] <https://plus.google.com/107751358238995507967>  [image: Find
us on Twitter] <http://www.twitter.com/oplin>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.oplin.org/pipermail/oplin4cast/attachments/20181128/4eb68363/attachment.html>