#SEGA is removing some classic #games from the #stores, grab them for #free while you still can!
#SEGA is about to delist a few legendary retro titles like #SonicTheHedgehog, #ShiningForce and #StreetsOfRage from the mobile stores.
Before they’re gone for good, they’re available for free on #Android and #iOS!
Better check the #appstores now and download these #classics before they disappear. Don’t miss out on this bit of #gaming history!
Great chat about what FAIR does and why we need it
Post Status Cache Up With Carrie Dils, Mika Epstein, and Ryan McCue
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jtw3PALlQA0
The group explores FAIR’s mission to create a federated independent repom system for WP plugins & themes, decentralization, community-driven moderation, inclusive governance, & privacy. They address challenges like supporting premium plugins, reducing enviro impact, & fostering global participation.
AFP: Google rejects app store age verification for online content. “American tech heavyweight Google on Friday reiterated its opposition to verifying the age of a device’s user through the app stores built into operating systems, calling a proposal from Facebook and Instagram parent Meta ‘ineffective’.”
https://rbfirehose.com/2025/06/17/afp-google-rejects-app-store-age-verification-for-online-content/
@ciourte @netopwibby Needless to say I've only heard of some Spanish low-cost #MVNO offering one device only in a #prepaid #bundle when #FirefoxOS was unveiled at the #MWC in #Barcelona based off coverage in @ct_Magazin at the time.
Alas @Mozilla deciding on purpose to literally splinter the market by letting #MNO|s and MVNOs run their #AppStore|s instead of a #centralized model, making the situation worse than in the "P.R." #China where there are several vendor-independent #AppStores for #Android.
Still, I'm #StillMad at #Mozilla for faceplanting Firefox OS cuz it had the easiest way to get started and a good architecture being every #App is just a #WebApp and all the system calls were standard #HTML5 permissions and nothing fancy.
Engadget: Apple’s App Store rules are still in violation of EU policy. “After levying a €500 million fine against Apple in April, the European Commission (EC) says that Apple is still out of compliance with the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and has less than 30 days remaining to comply. The DMA requires that Apple allow developers to inform their customers about sales or other offers outside […]
PC World: Microsoft is now squeezing Copilot AI into its app store. “If you’re a keen-eyed reader, you may recently have spotted the Copilot AI assistant in the Microsoft Store. According to Windows Latest, Microsoft has begun testing the AI chatbot’s appearance on product pages for apps and games in the form of a Copilot button.”
https://rbfirehose.com/2025/05/16/pc-world-microsoft-is-now-squeezing-copilot-ai-into-its-app-store/
The Verge: A new bill would force Apple to allow third-party app stores. “Representative Kat Cammack (R-FL) introduced a bill Tuesday that would require ‘large app store operators’ like Apple to let users install third-party app stores and set them as their default. The bill, called the App Store Freedom Act, aims to ‘promote competition and protect consumers and developers in the mobile app […]
Alabama Reflector: Bill requiring app stores to verify age for minors in Alabama stalls in House committee. “A bill that would require app stores to verify the age of individuals creating accounts in Alabama will likely not become law this year. The House State Government Committee was set Tuesday to consider SB 187, sponsored by Sen. Clyde Chambliss, R-Prattville. But the committee did not […]
Engadget: Apple hit with class action suit from developers after App Store ruling. “Apple may see further fallout over its failure to comply with a court order that led to last week’s contempt ruling. A class action suit filed on behalf of developers claims that Apple’s actions cost Pure Sweat Basketball (and other developers) revenue during the period it was found to have violated the […]
🌳 Looks like someone's finally trimming those infamous app store garden walls! New bill would force Apple & Google to let other app stores bloom in their carefully manicured ecosystems.
Users get to pick their own gardeners AND payment systems. Even better: pre-installed weeds can finally be pulled!
3️⃣ The Second Epic Games v Apple case means Apple can no longer charge fees for purchases made outside of apps on the App Store and it can’t stop app developers from pointing users to payment options outside of apps.
#Apple #EpicGames #Fortnite #AppStore #AppStores #InAppPurchases
4️⃣ TikTok was fined for not ensuring data from users in the EU hosted in China were protected from the Chinese Government.
#Data #TikTok #GDPR
9to5 Mac: Apple updates App Store Guidelines to allow links to external payments. “Apple has officially updated the App Store Guidelines to comply with the injunction handed down yesterday in its legal case with Epic Games. According to the new App Store rules, ‘there is no prohibition on an app including buttons, external links, or other calls to action’ in the United States.”
The Verge: A judge just blew up Apple’s control of the App Store. “Epic Games v. Apple judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers just ruled that, effective immediately, Apple is no longer allowed to collect fees on purchases made outside apps and blocks the company from restricting how developers can point users to where they can make purchases outside of apps. Apple says it will appeal the order.”
https://rbfirehose.com/2025/05/02/the-verge-a-judge-just-blew-up-apples-control-of-the-app-store/
"[T]he biggest culprit of the slow demise of the Web as we knew it has been the rise of the app economy. The first thing most large commercial websites will do when you try to access them on a mobile device is to open up a notification encouraging you to install their app. Why stay on the scary open Web when you can be viewing the same content on their safe walled garden? So people switched, and kept on switching until the Web on mobile is practically an extinct creature. 60% of all Web traffic comes from mobile devices, but people are using apps and not the browser on their phones, and 88% of all time spent on the phone is on apps and not on the Web. Sure, that includes games and all sorts of other applications, but the reality is that the old Web is a dying environment.
Add to that the fact that websites have become ugly behemoths filled with cookie banners and pop-ups, and you will see that the move to apps makes a lot of sense. The advantage of the app for developers is evident: higher retention, more control, and most importantly, higher capability of gathering user data that can then be resold to the highest bidder.
The consequences of this shift are far more profound than mere inconvenience. As the open Web recedes, we are witnessing the slow death of digital serendipity, that peculiar joy of stumbling across unexpected information or communities whilst wandering through hyperlinks. Apps create isolated silos of content, algorithmically curated and commercially optimised. This fragmentation erodes the decentralised nature of information access that characterised the early Web.
(...)
Perhaps most concerning is what this means for future generations who will never know the Web as it was."
#OpenWeb #AppEconomy #AppStores #Decentralization
https://www.technollama.co.uk/the-appstore-killed-the-website-star
@Hans@kirche.social @HonkHase@chaos.social @kirche@kirche.social
Nur, wenn man das auch in deren Cloud synct. Man kann das auch abschalten, statt die integriere Mailapp freie, datenschutzfreundliche #OpenSource #Apps wie #FairEmail, #Firefox usw. nutzen, #Apps aus alternativen #Appstores wie #Fdroid installieren, Apps, die kein Internet brauchen, dieses entziehen (z.B. mit #Netguard). Und #Android geht auch komplett ohne #Google.
@klappspatack @macmaniacs Eine Sache fiel mir zu #iOS noch ein: #Apple wurde von der #EU dazu verdonnert, sein Ökosystem zu öffnen und alternative #Appstores zuzulassen. Ich hab mich damit nicht weiter auseinandergesetzt, aber hier gäbe es eine Liste: https://emizentech.com/blog/app-store-alternatives-for-ios.html
Vielleicht wird das Thema im Zuge von #unplugtrump ja zunehmend interessanter ;)
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signs bill requiring Apple & Google app stores to verify user ages and obtain parental consent for minors to use certain apps. #Utah #SpencerCox #TechPolicy #AppStores #Apple #Google #Privacy #ParentalConsent #TechNews #DigitalSafety
Skich: Alternativer Spiele-Marktplatz für iOS startet in der EU
Am vergangenen Donnerstag kündigte Skich die Einführung eines neuen Spiele-Marktplatzes an, der speziell für iOS-Nutzer:innen in der Europäischen Union zugänglich ist. Der Skich Store bietet eine Plattform für mobi
https://www.apfeltalk.de/magazin/news/skich-alternativer-spiele-marktplatz-fuer-ios-startet-in-der-eu/
#News #Services #AppStores #AppleProvision #DigitalMarketsAct #EpicGames #IOSSpiele #MobileSpiele #SkichStore
Google Criticizes Meta’s Push to Redirect Child Safety onto App Stores
#Meta #Google #SocialMedia #Alphabet #ChildSafety #AppStores #Regulation #PrivacyConcerns #DigitalPrivacy #OnlineSafety #KidsSafety #DataPrivacy #DigitalRegulation
