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by rbarooah 5826 days ago
The problem with this analysis is that Apple doesn't have a monopoly on smartphones, mobile OS's or app stores, any more than Nieman Marcus has a monopoly on department stores. If customers don't like the selection, they have choice for all three. The same is true for developers.

If this ever does come to be investigated, it will be interesting to see what Google's position is. Will they claim they can't compete?
2 comments
lleger 5826 days ago
True — however that doesn't stop the DOJ from initiating an investigation or other third parties from requesting one. I think that Apple wants to avoid that kind of investigation. In any case: there are problems with the App Store, and I think that's the issue at hand here.
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gte910h 5826 days ago
>Apple doesn't have a monopoly on smartphones, mobile OS's or app stores

http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2010/01/apple-responsible-...

Really?

While there are alternatives, their usage is infinitesimal in comparison to the % sold through apple.

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tptacek 5825 days ago
Last I checked, Apple had something like a 20% share of the market for the platforms on which those apps run. Their phone has a feature, which all other app phones share, that happens to get used far more than its competition. That doesn't make Apple a monopolist.
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gte910h 5825 days ago
They sell 20% of the phones.

They sell near 100% of all apps for all phones. The people who buy apps on Android, Blackberry, Simbian and WinMo are vastly dwarfed on the sales of apps for the Apple AppStore.

They do not have a monopoly in phones, but in App sales.

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tptacek 5825 days ago
Explain to me how you can have a monopoly in app sales when you own only 20% of the app-running platforms (and you have competitors with a significantly larger share). How can you distort the market from that vantage point? If you abuse customers, they simply go to BlackBerry or Android.
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gte910h 5824 days ago
Most people who own android, blackberry and winmo, don't buy any apps. Most people who have the iPhone, buy 27 (the actual number, the mean as of April 25, 2009).

That's how. A huge percentage of android apps are free, and many people don't get you can install things on blackberry and winmo.

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