Trouble in Store for Apple

Barry Collins investigates the problems facing Apple after its stinging court defeat to Epic Games

- Barry Collins

If you head to YouTube, you'll find a five-minute video of Steve Jobs on stage at WWDC in 1997. In it, he answers a pointed question from a snotty developer who tells Jobs it’s “clear that on several accounts you've discussed, you don’t know what you're talking about”.

The developer is upset that Jobs has seemingly chosen Java over OpenDoc. Jobs takes a long pause, a slug of water and then justifies his decision to the developer, implying it’s a fool’s errand to pick a technology and then work out how to make it work for the consumer. “As we have tried to come up with a strategy and a vision for Apple, it started with what incredible benefits we can give to the customer.”

Somewhere along the line, it appears Apple lost sight of that strategy. What “incredible benefits” do customers get from forcing Spotify to hide links to cheaper subscriptions in its iOS app? Or preventing Kindle app owners from buying books directly in-app? It’s much easier to see the incredible benefit Apple can give to itself, as it insists on taking a cut on every purchase, whether the app developer is using Apple's payment system or not.

It’s a decision that has infuriated a federal judge in California, too. “Apple's continued attempts to interfere with competition will not be tolerated,” ruled district judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in an excoriating judgment against the company in late April. One in which she accused the company and its officers of contempt — both civil and criminal. The judgment brought an immediate end to Apple’s practice of charging a 27% commission on off-app purchases and preventing developers from linking to their own payment systems.

Apple is, of course, appealing, but for now let’s examine who the big winners and losers are from the court's extraordinary judgment.

An Epic victory