[onwardly]

I agree that its not for nothing and does help cover legitimate expenses Apple incurs. That said- its not a one-way street. The app ecosystem is one of several key drivers for iPhone/iPad sales- that alone probably justifies the cost to Apple.

Also- the point of this pitch is that the extra revenue means much more to smaller developers than it does to Apple, and that Apple in fact wouldn't lose that much revenue from such a scheme.