> Otherwise they wouldn't be there

They're on the App Store because they have no choice and they need to make money to pay for things like food, rent, etc.

I'll bet you dollars to donuts if some regulation required Apple to allow App Stores from other companies, most developers would dump Apple's in a heartbeat.

>They're on the App Store because they have no choice and they need to make money to pay for things like food, rent, etc.

That's crazy how before 2008 no developer was able to pay for food and rent. Sounds dreadful. Too bad there's no alternative that has an even bigger share of the total mobile market. Come on, dude.

>I'll bet you dollars to donuts if some regulation required Apple to allow App Stores from other companies, most developers would dump Apple's in a heartbeat.

Right, the same way that most car companies would abandon emissions standards if the EPA no longer forced them to (see: Volkswagen emissions scandal). That doesn't make it a good thing for consumers.

> No one is forcing them to develop for iOS.

The market is.

You can not afford not to publish something on iOS, if iOS were a niche platform used only by 1% of users maybe, but it is a mainstream platform used by more than 40% of users in the US.

I find it hard to believe that 100% of the market is the exact perfect amount that any given developer needs to sustain their business. 99% is already too little, and 60% is a non-starter. And yet this is the same market where tens to hundreds of companies have proliferated into billion dollar entities in mere years.

It's nothing more than greed, just like the greed you supposedly fight against.

> iOS App Store 2018 revenue came to $46.6 billon, while Google Play revenue stood at $24.8 billion by this measure

https://www.businessofapps.com/data/app-revenues/

> Apple Users More Willing to Pay for Apps

https://www.statista.com/chart/14590/app-downloads-and-consu...

> The median iPhone app user earns $85,000 per year, which is 40% more than the median Android phone user with an annual income of $61,000. [...] The average in-app shopping check is four times higher for an iOS user! [...] iPhone owners are also more likely to make purchases on their phones on a regular basis. These are important considerations for both retail app developers and those seeking to monetize via paid apps or in-app purchase. Mobile ads are the main source of revenue generation in Android apps.

https://buildfire.com/ios-android-users/

> Distribution of free and paid apps in the Apple App Store and Google Play as of June 2020

https://www.statista.com/statistics/263797/number-of-applica...

Thank you for confirming what an incredible deal iOS developers are getting for a mere 30% fee. It sounds like Apple has created a really valuable platform that attracted wealthy customers compared to the competition and they should be rewarded for it.

It also confirms that because of Apple's dominance in terms of profitable smartphone platforms to develop for, developers are essentially obligated into having to support iOS if they want to make money. Even if you choose to spin that in a positive light, it demonstrates a power asymmetry.

It's not greed to be in the platforms where your customers are. Otherwise companies wouldn't go to difficult stretches like supporting Internet Explorer.

Denying business to your customers just because they're hostages of a greedy actor is not the best way to conduct a business.