Mastodawn

Steve Barnes Apr 24, 2025

@rileytestut –

You're done developing apps for Apple devices, then? Or are you more of a bedfellow?

@Starfia if I stopped developing apps, the EU would lose an alternative app store that’s actively pressuring Apple to do better. Wouldn’t that be worse for my beliefs?

Steve Barnes Apr 24, 2025

@rileytestut –

You imagine Apple can do better? Sounds like a potential win for Apple – right in line with your stated beliefs!

👀

@Starfia my beliefs are I want Apple to be better, but instead of doing that (i.e. change their attitude towards developers) they’ve chosen to run to daddy Trump and donate millions to him.

Any win *for the latter* is a win for authoritarianism IMO, do you disagree?

Steve Barnes Apr 25, 2025

@rileytestut –

All right, thank you for engaging.

Let's check our facts. The only news I'm aware that you could be referring to is the story that Tim Cook personally (not Apple officially) donated one million (not multiple millions) of US dollars for Trump's inauguration. Meanwhile, there has been no statement of any kind from Cook or Apple endorsing fascism, and there have been other personal and official statements to the contrary.

Am I missing anything you're aware of that you can cite?

ebbi Apr 25, 2025

@Starfia @rileytestut Apple silenced employees speaking out about Palestine, and dollar matched donations to the IDF and an org that is responsible for further illegal settlements in the West Bank.

Daniel Apr 26, 2025

@ebbi @Starfia @rileytestut Has this been covered by any journals?

https://theintercept.com/2024/06/11/apple-donations-idf-israel-gaza-illegal-settlements/

ebbi Apr 26, 2025

@danielinoa @Starfia @rileytestut from The Intercept

Apple Matches Worker Donations to IDF and Illegal Settlements, Employees Allege

Self-described Apple workers, former employees, and shareholders are calling on the company to halt donations to nonprofits linked to Israel’s war effort.

The Intercept

Daniel Apr 26, 2025

@ebbi @Starfia @rileytestut Thanks!

https://www.wired.com/story/apple-store-employees-disciplined-supporting-palestinians

Adam May 12, 2025

@danielinoa

In case your interested, here are some more news articles about the company:

https://www.theverge.com/news/611967/apple-resumes-x-twitter-ad-spending-boycott

@ebbi

Apple Store Employees Say Coworkers Were Disciplined for Supporting Palestinians

A protest is planned Saturday at a Chicago Apple store where workers say managers disciplined staff—and fired an employee—for wearing pins, bracelets, or keffiyeh in support of Palestinian people.

WIRED

Mieszko Ślusarczyk Apr 24, 2025

@rileytestut This all proves the fines are too small.

Jonathan Dechko Apr 24, 2025

@spitfire @rileytestut Per the latest @atpfm (and many others before), a fine is just a fee to do a thing.

@jdechko @spitfire @atpfm I don’t disagree, but I’m actually ok with the fine amount at this point in time. If the end goal is compliance, it’s better to start small and increase over time/work with Apple vs start at maximum fine IMO

Mieszko Ślusarczyk Apr 24, 2025

@rileytestut @jdechko @atpfm The thing is they don’t seem to be planning on cooperating. They’ve been getting signals their solution is not compliant, and now that they’ve got fined they are not saying „we disagree, but we’ll pay”, but they’re choosing to fight it instead.

@spitfire @jdechko @atpfm I doubt Apple would have put this much effort into everything they’ve already done if their goal isn’t to eventually comply. I’d be shocked if we didn’t see them announce changes within next few months based on this

Jonathan Dechko Apr 25, 2025

@rileytestut @spitfire @atpfm That’s a really good point. They seem to have put a lot of effort into compliance in many areas. And I think the areas in which they don’t comply our areas where they’re opposed, and would still like to see some changes made by the EU

Mieszko Ślusarczyk Apr 25, 2025

@jdechko @rileytestut @atpfm I feel like they’ve made this much effort (which we still can call malicious noncompliance) to appear as if they were making an effort maybe hoping that will be enough, but more probably thinking they’ll do the rest with their lawyers and anti-EU PR. I doubt that’s going to work.

Mieszko Ślusarczyk Apr 24, 2025

@jdechko @rileytestut @atpfm I don’t think you can compare it to the RV toilet cleaning fee they’ve talked about ;)

Serhiy Makarenko Apr 24, 2025

@rileytestut An attempt to regulate something without the ability to create any pressure except fines is always a bad approach, which will barely provide the desirable results.

The problem with the EU market is that they don’t have a competitive homemade solution for smartphones, mobile, and desktop operating systems. So, Apple feels no pressure at all.

Good examples are the Chinese or Japanese markets. Strong competition from home companies and Apple comply with all requirements voluntarily.

Ankkuli Apr 25, 2025

@SerhiyMakarenko what competitive operating systems Japan has?

@ankkuli They have no home-made operating system like iOS or Android, but home vendors make smartphones with all necessary software for local mobile operators for decades, so competition is pretty strong.

@SerhiyMakarenko
@SerhiyMakarenko @ankkuli

https://gs.statcounter.com/vendor-market-share/mobile/japan

Mobile Vendor Market Share Japan | Statcounter Global Stats

This graph shows the market share of mobile vendors in Japan based on over 5 billion monthly page views.

StatCounter Global Stats

@2happy1sad @ankkuli Good catch. Will see how the market share will impact compliance with the Act on Promotion of Competition for Specified Smartphone Software. Still, China’s example is proving that competition does the job better.

@SerhiyMakarenko @ankkuli You mean communist China where the government can dictate market shares? I agree that that’s a pretty good comparison to the EU fines ;)

@2happy1sad @ankkuli I’m not comparing governments. I’m comparing how the government is fostering innovations and growing a competitive market inside the country to resist external threats. Yes, you are right, China’s government is bad. But for some reasons, the EU, surprisingly good in democracy, science, and technology, failed to fulfill the gap in the smartphone market and is now trying to regulate something without the ability to enforce the regulations except by issuing fines.

@2happy1sad @ankkuli And China is not "dictating" market shares. The USSR did, and this is one of many reasons it failed. China successfully adopted Western economic practices, and now they have a capitalistic market with a communistic flavor. This model is far away from being perfect, but it is definitely better than the USSR has. And it’s working to make necessary pressure on Apple to comply with law requirements in China.

@SerhiyMakarenko @ankkuli Of course it does. Just look at the movie industry for example, China changes how and if foreign films are allowed in the country all the time, depending on foreign relations, economy and national politics.

@2happy1sad @ankkuli This can be possible in the movie industry because it heavily relates to propaganda. However, I’m not 100% sure because I have a very basic understanding of how this industry works in China. I see no signs of the government regulation of the market shares in the smartphone market. Home vendors are dominating in China just because their models are cheaper and outperform iPhones in the specs. Probably, also because they have better integration with popular Chinese services.

@SerhiyMakarenko @ankkuli Yeah, the Great Wall Of China really spurs competiton!

@SerhiyMakarenko @ankkuli There are *tons* of state regulation to the markets in China.

@2happy1sad @ankkuli I’m not saying regulations do not exist on the Chinese markets. I’m saying that the desire to outperform competitors and generate more revenue forces Apple to comply with these regulations. In the EU, people will buy Apple or Google products no matter what, because there are no home competitors, only Korean or Chinese vendors. This will be an endless legal battle, and at the end, this fine will be paid by EU citizens because Apple hikes prices to cover this fine. That’s it.

@2happy1sad @ankkuli The same situation is in the EU not only with the smartphone market. Basically, with everything else: social networks (X, Meta, Bluesky), public clouds (AWS, GCP, Azure), all major OS originating from the US. I’m still wondering why the EU is not considering this as a security threat. And there is no way to solve this problem with regulations and fines.

Mathias af Jochnick Apr 26, 2025

@SerhiyMakarenko @ankkuli Agree with you on the bigger picture re. security and social networks. And yes, hard to solve with fees. It’s a sh*tshow if you ask me.

Serhiy Makarenko Apr 26, 2025

@2happy1sad @ankkuli Can’t agree more on that.