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Apple

Apple Says Plan for Nearly 50% Commission on Metaverse Purchases 'Lays Bare Meta's Hypocrisy' (macrumors.com) 34

Apple has responded to Meta's plan to take a nearly 50% commission for digital asset purchases made inside the metaverse after complaining about fees in the App Store, calling the decision hypocritical. From a report: Yesterday, it was revealed that Meta, more commonly known as Facebook, plans to take a steep 47.5% commission for digital asset purchases made inside the so-called "metaverse." The 47.5% cut includes a 30% hardware fee on top of a 17.5% platform fee. Responding to the plan, Apple spokesperson Fred Sainz told MarketWatch that Facebook is simply being hypocritical and that while it complains about Apple's own platform fees, it wants to charge creators even more. "Meta has repeatedly taken aim at Apple for charging developers a 30% commission for in-app purchases in the App Store -- and have used small businesses and creators as a scapegoat at every turn," Apple spokesman Fred Sainz stated in an email to MarketWatch. "Now -- Meta seeks to charge those same creators significantly more than any other platform. [Meta's] announcement lays bare Meta's hypocrisy. It goes to show that while they seek to use Apple's platform for free, they happily take from the creators and small businesses that use their own."
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Apple Says Plan for Nearly 50% Commission on Metaverse Purchases 'Lays Bare Meta's Hypocrisy'

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  • by Baconsmoke ( 6186954 ) on Thursday April 14, 2022 @09:49AM (#62446130)
    It's a reasonable point. However, in the end its two massive and greedy corporations doing what they always do. Insert Ken Watanabe gif "Let them fight!"
  • They are both evil and greedy.

    • I agree. As is Google, Microsoft, Amazon and a whole raft of others.
      Which bring me to this question:

      Are there *any* large companies that don't fall into either "Evil" or "Greedy" because I cannot think of any.

      • by Anonymous Coward

        You never even hear about small companies which aren't greedy, unless you're reading the bankruptcy news. There are no reasons for companies to avoid greed, and executives caught failing to be greedy tend to be treated harshly by owners, once their bad-faith actions are detected.

    • by OzPeter ( 195038 )

      They are both evil and greedy.

      Isn't that just the fundamental underpinnings of capitalism? The desire to make the most profit from the least effort?

      • The desire to make the most profit from the least effort is a universal human desire, equally present in communism/socialism. For example, under communism, people tend to do the bare minimum work necessary to meet their labor quota, and then claim as much government providence as they can. This winds up severely harming production overall, so nobody has their needs met.

        The "fundamental underpinning of capitalism" is that private individuals can own businesses (or stock in businesses). And, more poignantl

  • by Virtucon ( 127420 ) on Thursday April 14, 2022 @09:57AM (#62446166)

    The "Metaverse" is no better than a strip club. You may think you're going to get laid but you'll leave getting fucked instead.

  • by mr.dreadful ( 758768 ) on Thursday April 14, 2022 @09:57AM (#62446170)
    Facebook (Meta) is a self-serving hypocrite.
  • I agree with Apple in this case, but there's a pretty important distinction between operating a store and operating a shared world in which your servers and code are responsible for the content.

    If Apple accidentally allows an app that just shows you pictures of Harvey Weinsteins dick, the impact is limited to users who downloaded the app.

    If FB accidentally allows hats modeled on Harvey Weinstein's dick, the impact can become more widespread and poisonous to the platform as a whole.

    The level and complexity o

  • by rantrantrant ( 4753443 ) on Thursday April 14, 2022 @10:31AM (#62446318)
    ...but it's a great way to get techno-journalists & bloggers to give them loads of free coverage & advertising. Dumb journos are just chasing whatever scraps the big tech companies throw at them, same as the app developers. Well-played Facebook & Apple!
  • Pot, meet Kettle (Score:5, Insightful)

    by ZiggyZiggyZig ( 5490070 ) on Thursday April 14, 2022 @10:39AM (#62446352)

    Apple: We "only" charge 30%!

    • by dgatwood ( 11270 )

      What Apple is forgetting to mention is that most of Facebook's sales are likely to happen on mobile devices, which means Facebook must charge a 30% commission just to break even. A 50% commission, then, means a 30% commission for Apple and a 20% commission for Facebook.

      So no, Apple, you aren't "laying bare Meta's hypocrisy". You're actually laying bare just how badly consumers are harmed by your high fees.

  • by RJFerret ( 1279530 ) on Thursday April 14, 2022 @11:12AM (#62446466)

    ...Second Life charges nothing to sell there (there are regions/services to pay for if desired), but takes 3.5% converting their currency to USD and then 5% when cashing out.

  • There's no honour among thieves.

  • Which will attract and -maintain- a real, stable customer base.

    Then they have to actually attract sellers who have products that a significant number of people want to buy.

    Then and only then can Meta get their cut.

    IMO, facebook's success is built solely on capitalizing on a serious human fault, FOMO, Fear Of missing out.

    I am not convinced that this fault will translate to a poorly constructed, ad riddled fake version of reality.

    I am convinced that Meta shareholders will not be happy when the
  • Oh, of course, usury masquerading as rent seeking ⦠Iâ(TM)ll pass.

  • by organgtool ( 966989 ) on Thursday April 14, 2022 @02:07PM (#62447236)
    Apple is just jealous of Meta for having the "courage" to charge 47.5% right off the bat.
  • There will be walled gardens owned by corporations. Those will be like going into a store. That is not the Metaverse. There will be massively multiplayer games. Those are like joining a sports league. That is not the Metaverse. There will be public venues created by promoters. Those will be like going into a club. That is not the Metaverse. There will be public spaces created by governments. Those will be like going into the park, or the DMV, or the gallery of the Senate. That is not the Metaverse.
  • They saw Apple could get away with it so they figured they shouldn't be the only scumbags in town.

    Fuck Apple and Fuck Meta. Both of these companies have done a stupid amount of harm to the tech world.

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