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Comment by IBM

7 years ago

>I can’t see Google and Facebook being thrilled about implementing support for this, but given the recent scandal involving Cambridge Analytica, Apple should have extra leverage to push them in this direction.

If Apple makes it an App Store policy, what choice do they have?

It's also App Store policy to not lock built-in iOS features behind in-app purchases or subscriptions, yet Google gets away with it on the YouTube.app by only allowing background audio if you subscribe to YouTube Red.

  • Youtube in background is a built in ios feature?

    • Apple willingly permits any application to subvert user control. You can't record your iPhone screen trough the lightning connection while using Netflix app. You can't send a fake GPS signal to apps, give fake contact files, or lie to your software. And you can't play background audio, because fundamentally Apple doesn't put user freedom first. I find it bizarre that an application on my phone could choose to not play my audio in the background.

      If you can't lie to your software, then it controls you, and you have no power. Apple could do more in this aspect for control.

PR wars I imagine. "We can't do requested feature X because Apple blocks Y".

  • I think Apple would care about the trials and tribulations of the ad-tech industry about as much they did when they added Intelligent Tracking Prevention to Safari (or blocked third-party cookies by default).

  • To which Apple would basically go "...yeah, because we respect users privacy" and shrug.

    Google would look pretty bad if it continued to complain at that point.

Google and Facebook both interact with Apple in a lot of ways. If Apple makes it an App Store policy they will have options in how to attack back.

  • I think the poster 'IBM' was implying that in the current climate, Google and Facebook have to be a lot more careful in the "weapons of war" they use than Apple does. Not that Apple would be this evil, but in the current climate, Apple might even invite opportunity to provoke a response by Google or Facebook.