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The Commission-Will-Apply Edition Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Supreme Court Rejects Epic V. Apple Antitrust Case, by Adi Robertson, The Verge

The Supreme Court has denied a request to hear an antitrust dispute between Apple and Fortnite publisher Epic Games. It rejected two petitions, one from each company, this morning — leaving the case largely, but not entirely, a win for Apple.

StoreKit And Review Guideline Update, by Apple

If you’re considering using this entitlement along with in‑app purchase, which continues to be required for the purchase of digital goods and services within your app — it’s important to understand that some App Store features, such as Ask to Buy or Family Sharing, won’t be available to your customers when they make purchases on your website. Apple also won’t be able to assist customers with refunds, purchase history, subscription management, and other issues encountered when purchasing digital goods and services. You will be responsible for addressing such issues with customers.

A commission will apply to digital purchases facilitated through the StoreKit Purchase Link Entitlement (US).

Post-SCOTUS Ruling, Apple Releases Guidelines For ‘External Purchase Links’ In iOS Apps (Spoiler: They Still Demand The Same Commissions), by John Gruber, Daring Fireball

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again now, and I’m sure I’ll have to say it again in the future: Apple’s 30/15 percent commissions from App Store purchases and subscriptions are not payment processing fees. They include payment processing fees, but most of those commissions are, in Apple’s view, their way of monetizing their intellectual property. And they see the entire iOS platform as their IP.

Apple Slaps Epic Games With $73 MILLION Legal Bill Following Fortnite Trial — And It Could Have Been Even More, by Tammy Rogers, iMore

Apple originally said it spent $82,971,401 on the case, and then adjusted that number down to $81,560,362. Apple then gave Epic a 10% discount because the former lost one of the nine counts, making the final total a cool $73,404,326.

Sitting in an Immersive Fantasy Environment

Apple Announces Streaming Services And Sports Apps Available On Vision Pro At Launch, by Joe Rossignol, MacRumors

Apple today listed some streaming, video, and sports apps that will be available on the Vision Pro when the headset launches on February 2, including Disney+, ESPN, MLB, PGA Tour, Max, Discovery+, Amazon Prime Video, Paramount+, Peacock, Pluto TV, Tubi, Fubo, Crunchyroll, Red Bull TV, IMAX, TikTok, and MUBI.

The Apple Vision Pro Has A “Guest” Mode For Your Friends To Try It, by Emma Roth, The Verge

In a press release on Tuesday, Apple says you can let a “guest user” who’s not registered to the device try out certain apps and experiences, without needing to set up an account on the device.

Disney Has A Good Disney+ App For VisionOS, by John Gruber, Daring Fireball

Does it make the movie you’re watching any better to see it while sitting in an immersive fantasy environment? No, of course not. But it’s a lot of fun, because it’s so intricately detailed and well-done.

Apple Vision Pro App Store Launches, by Juli Clover, MacRumors

Developers are now able to release apps for the Vision Pro and have those apps appear in the Vision Pro App Store. Consumers don't yet have access to the Vision Pro headset, but reviewers who have the device on hand will be able to try out third-party apps created for the headset.

Apple Vision Pro Receives FCC Approval Ahead Of Launch, by Juli Clover, MacRumors

It is not unusual for new Apple devices to lack FCC approval until close to their launch date as it can take quite a bit of time for Apple to get products cleared.

On Security

A Flaw In Millions Of Apple, AMD, And Qualcomm GPUs Could Expose AI Data, by Lily Hay Newman, Matt Burgess, Wired

However, since GPUs were designed for raw graphics processing power, they haven’t been architected to the same degree with data privacy as a priority. As generative AI and other machine learning applications expand the uses of these chips, though, researchers from New York–based security firm Trail of Bits say that vulnerabilities in GPUs are an increasingly urgent concern.

Beware, All Windows And Mac Devices Possibly At Risk - Dangerous Opera Security Flaw Could Have Allowed Hackers To Run Any File They Want, by Sead Fadilpašić, TechRadar

Opera, a popular Chromium-based browser, was found carrying a vulnerability that would allow hackers to install pretty much any file on both Windows and macOS operating systems.

Bottom of the Page

Are there any government or regulators that claim that Apple cannot charge money from developers who want to use Apple's APIs?

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