[mrtranscendence]

I disagree with the assumption that restricting Macs to the MAS would be profit-maximizing for Apple. The context and expectations are different, and such restrictions -- hobbling many uses of macOS -- would drive developers away from Macs to competing platforms. I'm not even sure what those restrictions would look like; can I not execute arbitrary Python code? Can I not install Python packages from PyPI? (And how are they going to stop me, exactly?) Can I not use clang to compile a C project? To what extent can MacOS really be locked down in a way that doesn't drive away any developer who's not making iOS apps?

And if the Mac software scene stagnates, Apple eventually loses their core constituency.

[threepio]

I'm referring to GUI apps like the kind currently sold in the app store. There has long been a path to sell these apps direct to customers. But with each OS release, it has become more onerous (codesigning and notarization and whatnot). Still, no one wanted to tolerate the 30% tax. Now it's 15%.

The noise around the app store reminds me of all the complaints when Adobe said it would move its apps into the Creative Cloud on a subscription basis. Yes, a certain percentage of customers left. But the extra revenue more than made up for the loss.