Apple execs head to London to fight for the App Store – Computerworld

Is it all about legality or profitability?

After all, as I’ve noted before, even some of the company’s critics charge a similar commission on sales through their platforms, meaning it’s not a commission/no commission issue, but a question of how much the commission is worth. It is legal to charge fees from an Apple storefront or any other storefront. After all, even large brick-and-mortar grocery stores charge for shelf space.

“The fees charged by the App Store are largely similar to the fees charged by all other digital marketplaces,” Apple said when the case began. “In fact, 85% of apps on the App Store are free, and developers don’t pay Apple anything. And the vast majority of developers who pay Apple a commission for selling a digital product or service are entitled to a 15% commission.”

What happens next?

The plaintiff at one point said Apple earned $15 billion in App Store sales at an expense of about $100 million, although these expenses seem to ignore the R&D, OS development, security, payments, and related investments Apple makes in its ecosystem.