Apple Arcade and Google Stadia are a clear indication that the video game industry could undergo a change. Already classic consoles like PlayStation or Xbox are still strong and it seems complicated that there is a change in trend, but the truth is that the concept of having a platform that offers streaming games is being very tempting for users and developers. Even Facebook has wanted to enter this world with a gaming platform that, although it is different in concept from that of Apple and Google, is there trying to compete although it has collided head-on with the regulations of the App Store.
The App Store stays firm again
Apple’s app store is starring in several news this week. The most encouraging was its revenue figure, which is showing that it is a very profitable place for the company and also for users and developers. The other news is related to its regulations and is that a developer of a mail manager recently accused Californians of mafia attitudes for preventing their app, which clearly violated the regulations, from entering the App Store. Something similar happens now with Facebook Gaming.
The company led by Mark Zuckerberg has been trying since February to enter the iOS App Store to offer exclusive gaming content in a single application, thus differentiating it from the original Facebook app. It is a kind of social network dedicated to the transmission of live video games, also offering exclusive games developed by them and that can only be found there. This, however, collides head-on with a standard that Apple has in its store.
According to a report from the well-known New York Times, Apple has once again rejected the inclusion of Facebook Gaming in the App Store despite the insistence of the developers. The regulations are clear and it is not possible to create platforms apart from an application for the distribution of games, this being a separate service. This may perhaps be related to a strategy in which to prevent Apple Arcade from having competition, which in a way is not unlawful nor does it prevent apps like Facebook from having their platform integrated into a single application. Be that as it may and more or less like this standard, the truth is that it has been around for a long time and therefore could not allow developers to claim that the rejection of the app is unfair.
Apple has not spoken on the matter, at least at the time of writing this article, although from the company of the large social network they hope that Californians can reconsider their decision and admit any allegation in this regard. In any case, we already saw in this week’s report how video games are one of the sectors that generate the most money in the App Store, which in itself is a matter of competition between the different developers and surely this will not be the first nor the last time news of this type appears.