> Apple doesn't forbid me from doing a private business exchange with Epic on my device
I don't think Apple can do that. What Apple can do, is to not allow Epic to use their distribution service, known as AppStore.
What you install on your iDevice is your own business and Apple cannot do anything about it. That's why jailbreaking your device is completely legal, you own your device you paid for and you can do whatever you like with it.
Epic can develop a jailbreak or use a jailbreak distribution service to distribute their Apps. You can hack your phone and if Epic's licensing allows that, you can install Epic games yourself. You can hack your phone, install a special distribution of Android to you iPhone and install it from there.
Apple can't do anything about it. Not easy as tapping a button you say? Well Apple is not obligated to make any of this easy. They make it very clear that they support app installation through Apple AppStore and and no point they promise to help you out to install apps through any other means. If you want to do that, you will have to do it without the help of Apple.
Or you know, don't buy Apple devices if the arrangement doesn't work for you.
This seems to be overstating Apple’s position as neutral here, they are actively hostile to jailbreakers, and Apple will try to stop you any way they can.
I agree. The practical result of the current situation is that Apple can choose what apps most people can install into the their devices but this needs to be framed correctly because Apple actually targets the developers and not the users when they practically control the app distribution to the devices they sold.
Why is it important? Because when described incorrectly, solutions will also be incorrect. Apple doesn’t control it because Tim Cook gets hard when doesn’t allow some apps into the phones of the customers. They do it because they want to be paid for the intellectual properties and opportunities they provide, they also want to be able to continue selling iPhones at premium prices and in this competitive environment they want to be able to control the working of the devices so to provide premium experience.
> they want to be able to control the working of the devices so to provide premium experience.
Well too fucking bad. They can offer their premium services as a fair competitor in the market and if people want that, they can choose it, and if they don't, they can choose other things.
> They can offer their premium services as a fair competitor in the market and if people want that, they can choose it, and if they don't, they can choose other things.
Yes, that's exactly the situation. If people don't like it, they go buy a Samsung, a Pixel, Xiaomi, a Huawei, a Sony etc. There's no need for Apple be compelled do anything, there are plenty of options when you don't like the Apple offerings.
And those alternatives are not like Bing to Google, these are very viable alternatives where Apple is actually a small minority of the market. It's %50 in the US and much, much less in the rest of the world.
Jailbreaking, by definition, is using exploits and vulnerabilities in the security of the device to bypass said security. Of course Apple is going to try and stop that. If they didn't, they'd be admitting that they don't care about the security of their devices which is a major factor in why people and companies buy their devices.
Hmm then possibly Apple could simply allow consenting users to install software by means other than their highly-regulated appstore cash grab.
Every major cosumer 'computer' in history has allowed this as far as I can tell. Yet for some reason now in the last few years its unthinkable on specifically Apple devices. I'm sure it's merely a coincidence they make billions of dollars off of this overly draconian "security" framework.
I don't think Apple can do that. What Apple can do, is to not allow Epic to use their distribution service, known as AppStore.
What you install on your iDevice is your own business and Apple cannot do anything about it. That's why jailbreaking your device is completely legal, you own your device you paid for and you can do whatever you like with it.
Epic can develop a jailbreak or use a jailbreak distribution service to distribute their Apps. You can hack your phone and if Epic's licensing allows that, you can install Epic games yourself. You can hack your phone, install a special distribution of Android to you iPhone and install it from there.
Apple can't do anything about it. Not easy as tapping a button you say? Well Apple is not obligated to make any of this easy. They make it very clear that they support app installation through Apple AppStore and and no point they promise to help you out to install apps through any other means. If you want to do that, you will have to do it without the help of Apple.
Or you know, don't buy Apple devices if the arrangement doesn't work for you.