new | show | ask | jobs Github

BLKNSLVR 3 days ago

Title of the article itself seems to have changed to:

70% of Japan smartphone games bypass in-app payments to avoid IT giants

I think it should be:

70% of Japan smartphone games bypass in-app payments to avoid unnecessarily additional costs to customers

Or more inflammatorily:

70% of Japan smartphone games bypass in-app payments to avoid unnecessarily parasitic middlemen

▲

Cloudef 3 days ago | parent | next [-]

For parasitic games that certainly aren't just illegal casinos

▲

Y_Y 3 days ago | parent | next [-]

To be fair the ubiquitous _pachinko_ parlours of Japan are pretty much exactly that. You gamble with worthless tokens, that an unrelated business next door just so happens to be willing to trade for items of value.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pachinko

	▲	Cloudef 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		They are not exactly that. Pachinko with ball exchange store next door lets you cash out. Gacha games you gamble for digital garbage you will be never be able to cash out.

▲

johnecheck 3 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

The 30% cut hurts every developer, not just the minority building bad games that make the world worse.

▲

musicale 3 days ago | parent [-]

Smartphone game stores aren't the only option for game developers. They could go with Nintendo eShop (30% platform fee), or Sony PSN store (30% platform fee), or Xbox store (30% platform fee). Hmm, maybe there's a trend here?

More seriously, Android does allow sideloading and alternative game stores. There are also subscription services like Xbox game pass, Amazon Luna, and Apple Arcade, though I don't know their exact payment models. And PC gaming still exists - there are popular game stores like Steam that take a smaller cut.

I think it's hard to make money on games on any platform, but Steam does seem to have a vibrant indie game scene.

	▲	johnecheck 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		A trend indeed. You know what each of those stores charging 30% have in common? They each come bundled with the OS on your device and have massive advantages over any competing stores (if they even allowed them to exist). Since devices are so expensive and users tend to be loyal, [company] isn't going to see much increase in sales by lowering their fees. With no competition and no downward pressure on prices, they just pick the 'industry standard', effectively price fixing without true collusion. I'm pretty sure this isn't ideal but I don't pretend to know the answers. Until then, I'll just be focusing on building my ideas as web apps. (Flutter apps, so I can release elsewhere if the terms are reasonable).

▲

micromacrofoot 3 days ago | parent | prev [-]

yeah they're fighting over who gets more of our blood

▲

georgeecollins 3 days ago | parent [-]

Well good news, the fight has been won by Only Fans, Fan Duel, Robinhood, Coinbase, etc. But keep your pearls handy to clutch over loot boxes.

	▲	micromacrofoot 9 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Pearls should be clutched over all of them, aside from the porn it's all gambling — loot boxes are an egregious example because it onboards children to the habit

▲

anigbrowl 3 days ago | parent | prev [-]

I edited the title to make it more informative. The original was confusing because I thought it might be about Softbank or SNS (social media) firms like LINE.