[evanmoran]

I don't believe you're accurate. All apps that could charge money through Apple payments stopped doing so long ago and now are "free" with an external subscription or ads: Netflix, Amazon Prime, Microsoft Office, Slack, Google Docs/Drive, Dropbox, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Hey Email, etc. Only free-to-play games / gambling / scam apps stayed in the App Store, and the rest are gone.

[freeAgent]

It’s also worth noting that the “developers” who are able to escape this all need Apple’s permission and Apple almost exclusively grants permission to megacorps that could single-handedly hurt Apple’s business were they to protest. Smaller (which in this case doesn’t necessarily mean “small”) players are still locked in. This has the effect of further entrenching Big Tech since they can escape the confiscatory Apple tax while smaller competitors cannot.