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Daily Update: Google Conspiracy, Apple Malice, Black Ops Map Pack, More

Feb. 1, 2011 Paul Thurrott | Paul Thurrott's Supersite for Windows
Good morning from the snowy north. I believe we're undergoing our fifth major snowfall of the season as I write this. I'm overjoyed. Not really.

Google watcher Danny Sullivan writes that Bing is cheating by copying Google's search results. It's unclear if Danny thought it was April 1 instead of February 1. Remember, anyone can be an award-winning tech writer.

Apple is apparently throwing down the gauntlet against companies that sell content inside of iOS apps. And that means that Apple will almost certainly act to kill the Amazon Kindle app for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Which is, of course, one of the most user unfriendly things Apple's done in a long time. And that's saying a lot. Please, Apple. Explain why this isn't true.

The first Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack, First Strike, is available today but only for the Xbox 360d. I've been playing it for a bit, for, um, testing purposes. It's OK, not quite as interesting or exciting as I had hoped.

From the inconvenient truth department: Windows Mobile market share was higher than that of Windows Phone 7 in Q4 2010, according to NPD. In fact, it was double WP's share. Yikes.

Discuss this Article 10

chuckb84
on Feb 1, 2011
I know it's great fun to call Apple malicious, but you might get the facts straight first,

"How this news will affect users of the Amazon Kindle app remains to be seen. Based on the rejection of the Sony Reader app, it would appear that the Amazon Kindle app will have to undergo changes to the way it functions or risk being pulled from the App Store. However, such a move could create a backlash amongst users who have already purchased e-books through the app. In the case of the Sony Reader app users have not yet been affected directly, although it does restrict content delivery choices for users indirectly.

The Kindle app may be immune as it simply pushes users out to the browser to buy books rather than handling titles in-app. As such, it could simply be that Apple is enforcing its existing rules rather than toughening its conditions."



neosar
on Feb 1, 2011
Not defending Apple as I feel the policy is stupid, but I don't think it will affect the Kindle app. They do not do in-app sales, only link to the web store. Worst case scenario they'd just have to remove that link.
skborders
on Feb 1, 2011
Maybe Sony is not giving apple their cut through their app and amazon is or the iBooks store is not doing well.
neosar
on Feb 1, 2011
Update to my previous comment: I was wrong. The policy is plain stupid. They're only option will be to remove the link to the external store.

From Apple:

"Apple's made no change to its App Store Guidlines, it's simply enforcing a rule that's been in them all along: apps that offer purchases elsewhere must support in-app purchases as well. We have not changed our developer terms or guidelines," company spokesperson Trudy Miller told me. "We are now requiring that if an app offers customers the ability to purchase books outside of the app, that the same option is also available to customers from within the app with in-app purchase."

Pure... stupid.





soniclooking
on Feb 1, 2011
I'm sure all those folks who are suffering with their windows mobile device, will see how great Windows phone 7 is. I'm sure alot of people are still in contract, or waiting for this update.
neosar
on Feb 1, 2011
@chuckb84 Maybe you should read the official statement from Apple rather than the out loud musings of a random blogger. Read what I posted above. As an iPhone user and a Kindle user, that SUCKS.
doubledeej
on Feb 1, 2011
1. Apple is greedy and evil. Moves like this just show their true motivations. 30%??? way too much for doing essentially nothing. And they try to exercise way too much control over both their users and application developers.

2. I have both a Windows Phone (HTC HD7) and Windows Mobile phone (HTC HD2) and frankly I still prefer the Windows Mobile phone. The HD7 is missing so many functions that I use daily on my HD2 that my week-long exclusive-use trial of the HD7 is becoming frustrating. Among the features I miss most are automatic profile selection (it automatically goes to Vibrate mode when I have an active appointment), real multitasking, custom ringtones, Skype, and full functionality of the Bing app. Windows Phone is pretty and has a very slick and fast interface, but it's still missing some pretty key features before I can live with it as my primary phone. Hopefully after an update or two I can make the switch permanent.



chuckb84
on Feb 2, 2011
neosar, you are correct. Paul jumped the gun, that was the main point. Despite that, it appears Apple is being stupid. I hope this gets fixed, because they'll alienate a lot of users with this. Not a good move.
pthurrott
on Feb 2, 2011
chuckb. How did I "jump the gun"? In a small blurb in a blog post, I wrote that Apple *APPARENTLY* is doing ... blah blah blah. Then I wrote that Apple needs to explain what it's really doing. And then Apple did. And then the next day (today) I wrote a news story about it. Sounds like I was kind of on the ball as the news unfolded, when you think about it.
tipsforipad
on Feb 25, 2011
We are now requiring that if an app offers customers the ability to purchase books outside of the app, that the same option is also available to customers from within the app with in-app purchase.

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