Wonder why we need 3rd party app stores.
And ffs, would other countries help a little, or should the EU just carry your asses every single time big tech tries some shit.
this post was submitted on 19 Dec 2025
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would other countries help a little
https://techcrunch.com/2025/12/18/apple-opens-up-its-app-store-to-competition-in-japan/
I can assure you, it was not Apple's idea. Not like they just turned good hearted and chose to do it 🤣
So is this what the tech bros wanted when they said locked in walled gardens where more secure?
I guess they're not taking their big cut on app revenue to offer a good neutral platform.
How can they justify 100|300/year + 30% if not with a moderated neutral platform?
One of the reasons that the App Store purportedly exists is to provide quality software rather than malware and spam.
I guess that goes out of the window as soon as money appears.
You can literally type the name of an app and the first three results are, if you’re lucky, competitors. More often than not they’re pure junk.
And that assumes you’re searching for an app that’s not trash… ugh.
To be more technical correct, all ideals go out of the window the moment a shareholder pushes a little.
Apple has been one of the wealthiest countries for years, they don't need money, they can’t be doing this just for money.
They are doing it, to get more money yes, but only in order to make the angle of a line go up so they can sell a comfortable illusion to the people keeping them in charge of the available unimaginable mass of wealth already there.
there’s a difference between malware and junk. ios is pretty much malware free. and i’m not sure you want apple deciding what is “junk” and what isn’t.
Facebook app set up a local server on the iOS device that received pings when a browser loaded their tracking pixels.
I feel like that behaviour falls under my definition of spyware. I know it’s not as malicious as it could be, but still.
sure, there are gray areas, and apple does keep them somewhat in check. but also if you're willingly installing facebook you should know that your privacy is already heavily compromised.
Now up the challenge: In App Store, find a simple app that is not a "solution", "ecosystem" nor a "lifestyle", does not have ads, and does not require a subscription for basic functionality.
(Years ago, I tried about 10 RSS readers, News Reader was what I finally found, way down the list)
I understand the economics are challenging but it’s been a race to the bottom. There were and still are some really high quality apps, but so many trash!
Currently, there is a single ad spot at the top of search results in the App Store. For example, if you search for “Facebook,” you might see an ad at the top of the results for TikTok. This is because TikTok is targeting specific search terms and has won the auction for that placement.
A second app 'winning search results' in an app store is the stupidest fucking thing I have ever heard. Like ordering something in a restaurant and always being offered something else instead.
"I'll have the onion soup."
"Would you like Campbell's tomato soup?"
Every single time.
"Is Pepsi okay?"
Restaurants offering a substitution because they don't have something isn't really comparable.
This is more like being offered something other than what you ordered off the menu every single time even though they have what you ordered.
Why?
It’s already a cesspool.
These days I keep forgetting the App Store is a thing. That’s how important apps are to me anymore. Also, fuck apple for being the tacky soulless corporate monster that it always used to make fun of.
Yes, but they're magical and revolutionary ads. You've never seen ads like these before.
Crazy how much companies are shitting all over themselves to try and scrape more money together when, in all likelihood, it'll have the opposite effect.
That's for the next CEO to worry about.
What about fedoucheary responsibility?
Oh no, I think I spelled it wrong.
Damn. Between Ios26 bugs, liquid UI, and now this, it looks like Apple is speedrunning losing me as a customer.
Only Ads? Not IA powered Ads with an agent managing the apps for you? Oh boy Apple really lost the IA race
Is there a better alternative app search platform that has curated reviews and is community driven, or have bots destroyed everything nice on the internet?
I like to look up app recommendations and also just dig deep into the app store.
I found a lot of cool software and apps that are paid once and have forever.
Compared to the podcasts apps that will literally attempt to kill you with video ads while driving.
Apparently according to that one app review.
AppRaven is quite nice
Oh boy how exciting!