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by timpetri 2144 days ago
It seems like this exact logic would rule out any and all of the remote screen control apps that are currently available for iOS.
3 comments

And of course the Steam Link app, which does everything a game streaming service does except collect subscription fees.
So if Stadia disallowed the "Store" portion of the app, they could be allowed on there technically?
No because I think it would be rejected under the rule that the user has to own the host machine and it be on LAN...

See App Store guidelines section 4.2.7:

"The app must only connect to a user-owned host device that is a personal computer or dedicated game console owned by the user, and both the host device and client must be connected on a local and LAN-based network."

Does the iOS version of Steam Link not allow you to stream remotely like the Android and desktop versions?
Not sure on steam link specifically but I have streamed games from my PS4 remotely using their app.
That section of the rules probably doesn't apply to the PS4 app because they mirror the entire OS of the PS4 instead of just the Steam app.

(iOS steam link is local network only)

> a user-owned host device

So, they can transfer "ownership" to me whenever I use my personal computer that happens to be located in Google's cloud which, through a series of tubes, is in fact connected to my LAN-based network.

I doubt it would be that simple. It seems like Apple's main objection is being able to play games on iOS that you haven't bought from the App Store.
With Plex, I can watch movies I didn't buy from Apple. With Kindle, I can read books I didn't buy through Apple. Hell again with Steam Link, I can play games I didn't buy through Apple.

This is just pure monopolistic behavior, nothing less.

I hope the excellent open source Moonlight doesn’t get banned. It reverse engineered the Nvidia Shield (now a TV box a la Roku) features and allows really high quality low latency gaming from devices if you have an nvidia video card. What’s even better is it works without any outside internet required, just your LAN, which is a rare thing these days.
Nope. This is about limiting apps being distributed by an alternative App Store where the content cannot be reviewed that it meets non-technical Apple guidelines. Remote Screen Control apps and things like Steam Link are different because the content comes from the user's hardware and data, not from the creator of the app.
Xbox Streaming includes Console Streaming (https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-game-streaming/console-strea...)

And I really don't see how there's any sort of difference whether the game console that's streaming the game is owned by the person or sits in some datacenter somewhere. It's practically the same experience from the user's perspective.

Disclaimer: MSFT employee, not in Xbox, all views are my own, etc.

Steam Link wasn't different, they spent a year being rejected from the app store and eventually removed all store functionality when streaming your desktop.

https://www.theverge.com/2018/5/24/17392470/apple-rejects-va...