[Andrew_nenakhov]

Yeah, like the inability for the user to install an app after an authoritarian government decided that their subjects should not be using it, and Apple subserviently obeyed and removed said app from the Appstore.

An extremely beneficial policy for the customers, right.

[simonklitj]

You’re talking about something else. Do we expect money-making companies to be the ones to war against authoritarian regimes? Do we not also expect companies to obey the laws of the lands in which they conduct business? You can’t just say screw it to GDPR and expect to continue to be able to conduct business in the EU.

[Andrew_nenakhov]

I do expect the company that sells hardware to their users to allow users to decide which apps to run on sold devices. Currently, Apple is behaving as if still owns those devices and decides which apps to run. Precisely this lock-in created by apple is actively exploited by authoritarian regimes.

If Apple will allow third-party app stores or direct installation of applications on devices, dictatorships will lose this capability to harm Apple's customers.

But of course we all know that this policy was never intended to protect users, it was to protect Apple and their appstore monopoly, which also allows Apple to extort developers of 30% of all of their revenues by forcing them into Apple's payment services. Finally, the world has had enough of this and starts to fight back against it.

[lovich]

> If Apple will allow third-party app stores or direct installation of applications on devices, dictatorships will lose this capability to harm Apple's customers.

As someone who switched from the Samsung note line to iPhone, the only freedom I felt from the ability to install other apps was the freedom to deal with all the unrecoverable crap ware.

There’s other phones out there with greater freedom than the iPhone, people are aware of them, and are still choosing the iPhone.

The curation is a benefit in that I have a corporation with thousands of employees working to prevent the other corporations from making my user experience worse. If the curation goes away I’d probably switch to a cheaper phone next upgrade and I’m sure apples aware of that

[Andrew_nenakhov]

You are not living in an authoritarian country. That's why you think that the shiny chains that you wear are just a nice decoration, because they were never used to strangle you.

[lovich]

If I live in an authoritarian country then the chains are coming either way

[MrStonedOne]

Apple didn't have to lock users out of installing "unapproved" apps on their own. That isn't for the user's benefit and isn't necessary for apple to have a curated app store.

[simonklitj]

They do allow this with a free developer account. It’s not easy-easy, but tools to do it pretty effortlessly exist (AltStore).

[dwaite]

What would the alternative be - the method of installation is the App Store, and Apple's compliance was removing the public and private presence from the App Store within that country.

[oauea]

Just allow sideloading. It's not hard to not block that. But apple is hell-bent on collecting every cent they can, so of course all app installations must go through their walled garden where they can take their 30%. Anti-consumer behavior at its finest.

[mehrdada]

Sideloading is allowed with a free developer account.

[Andrew_nenakhov]

Not really. You also need a computer running XCode (i.e. a mac), you'll need to follow the instructions out of 9 rather not obvious pounts and you'll also need to build be app you want to install.

Oh, and of course you won't be able to use push notifications, because Apple.