Expanding the scope of its legal dispute with Apple, Epic Games filed a case against the company in Australia accusing it of creating a monopoly via its App Store. Now, in its defense, the Cupertino tech giant is arguing that iOS App Store is far from a monopoly and developers can bypass the App Store commission rate by making web apps.
Earlier, the Cupertino tech giant called Epic Games’ lawsuit self-serving and asked the Australian court to dismiss the case because the developer had agreed to limit legal battles in California only.
Apple explains the potential of web browsers as an alternative to iOS App Store for app distribution
In its response, spotted by ZDNet, Apple argued that consumers own multiple devices like smartphones, laptops, computers, and consoles, so developers are not restricted to the iOS App Store for distribution and monetization of their apps. In addition, iOS users also have to option to access apps on the web.
Even if a user only owns iOS-based devices, distribution is far from limited to the Apple App Store because developers have multiple alternative channels to reach that user. The whole web is available to them, and iOS devices have unrestricted and uncontrolled access to it. One common approach is for users to purchase and consume digital content or services on a website.
In its response, Apple further details the functionality and potential of web browsers as a viable distribution platform for apps.
Web browsers are used not only as a distribution portal, but also as platforms themselves, hosting “progressive web applications” (PWAs) that eliminate the need to download a developer’s app through the App Store (or other means) at all. PWAs are increasingly available for and through mobile-based browsers and devices, including on iOS. PWAs are apps that are built using common web technology like HTML 5, but have the look, feel and functionality of a native app.
They can even have an app icon that resides on the device home screen. Web apps are becoming increasingly popular. Companies such as Amazon, Google, Starbucks, Pinterest, Uber and the FT use web apps. Amazon, for example, has just launched its Luna mobile gaming service as a web app. Microsoft and Google are also launching gaming apps on iOS via web apps. The developer of the Telegram messaging app has also recently stated that it is working on a rich web app for iOS devices.
