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Apple App Store faces an important decision in South Korea: spend money to settle, or just leave it

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News on the morning of September 1st, Beijing time, according to reports, the passage of South Korea’s “Telecom Business Act” prohibits major app store operators such as Apple from forcing software developers to use their payment systems, which prohibits App Store payment restrictions. How does Apple continue to implement the privacy-oriented application control concept? Will it comply with this law?

Although South Korea has decided to prohibit Apple and Google from continuing to exercise control over the payment channels of their app stores, there is still some room for maneuver. The government stated that it will formulate details and practical measures during the specific implementation period.

But this does not mean that the thunder is heavy and the rain is small. Apple and Google have lost their exclusivity in South Korea because of this legislation, and once the matter breaks through in South Korea, it may spread to all parts of the world – unless the two giants take certain measures.

The obstacles to splitting the App Store always exist, involving business, political, and technical reasons. However, once South Korea officially promulgated this decree, the political will shown by it is very likely to be followed up by other countries.

After the implementation of this law, it will force Apple and Google to prove that it is technically feasible to support multiple payment systems at the same time . At present, although developers can provide subscription services outside of the App Store, they cannot inform users of other payment channels in the app.

Whether South Korea’s decision violates international trade agreements is still controversial. If it is really violated, then how the White House reacts to South Korea’s move is particularly important.

There is a problem that may cause tensions internationally: Some people believe that this new law is actually a political move to protect Samsung. If you don’t know much about the situation in South Korea, here is a brief introduction: Samsung is the pride of South Korea. Although it is also closely related to this application market, its main identity is a hardware supplier, so it is not affected by this law.

However, regardless of the political pressure in the United States, Apple and Google are definitely planning countermeasures.

Accept the future

Despite the growing scale of the App Store, Apple’s main source of revenue is still hardware. Although the company is increasing the proportion of its service business, in any case, the loss of revenue from the App Store will not cause a devastating blow to it.

So Apple can only accept South Korea’s decision. It can introduce other payment methods and bear the loss of 15% or 30% of commissions in some cases because at least some developers will switch to their own payment systems in all regions.

Some developers will still continue Apple’s system. Others will choose to switch, and then find that the cost of running such a payment system is too high, and eventually return to Apple’s embrace.

But large companies like Epic Games should run their own payment systems. They also hope to get the same promotional support as before. Now, the App Store will become Apple’s cost, not a source of revenue.

The new law does not mean that alternative app stores must appear, but it does mean that Apple cannot automatically extract a share from app sales. Therefore, no matter how Apple views the potential loss of revenue, it will not be willing to bear more App Store operating costs.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a court case with Epic Games that splitting the App Store will cause users to encounter difficulties because they have to use multiple payment channels. “This has a great impact on convenience,” he said. “The problem of fraud will increase with it.”

Regardless of whether this will happen, Cook’s remarks indicate that Apple will not give up this revenue easily. “We have to find another way to collect commissions.” He said.

Apple shouldn’t delist apps just because they don’t pay. South Korea has taken this situation into consideration, so it has specifically formulated some provisions to prevent Apple or Google from retaliating by delisting apps or unreasonably delaying the approval process.

If Apple did take such retaliatory measures, it would be tantamount to ignoring South Korean law. By then, Apple will face a fine of up to 3% of its Korean revenue.

Business cost

It is not yet clear what Apple’s revenue in South Korea is, and under what circumstances the government will impose the highest fine, or why it will reduce the proportion of fines.

In addition, the exact timing of the fine is not yet known. The issue of the grace period is also unclear. For example, it is still impossible to judge whether South Korea will use the income obtained in the country in the previous 12 months as the calculation base when determining the fine for Apple.

What happens if Apple or Google repeatedly violates the law? It is unclear whether the South Korean government will adopt a combination of fines.

Even if South Korea does decide to use 3% of Apple’s income in the country as the base, it is still impossible to determine the specific amount. The South Korean government can probably make calculations based on Apple’s tax report, but in fact, only Apple itself knows where the specific revenue comes from.

If you know your income in a certain place, then you obviously know what 3% of it is, so that you can judge whether it is worth paying the fine.

Therefore, it is possible that Apple and Google may ignore South Korean laws, and nothing more than pay a fine every year in accordance with the prescribed amount.

Even if it is purely from a financial point of view, it may be worthwhile to calculate based solely on operating data in Korea. If you consider the signal sent to other countries/regions such as the United States, this approach may be more worthwhile.

It is never a good thing for companies to be above the law, but these two companies can do it.

This will send an important signal to other countries/regions: at best, they can only increase the amount of fines.

Withdraw from South Korea?

Apple and Google actually have another weapon. They can simply stop doing business in South Korea or any other place where such laws are enforced.

The reason why Apple sells globally is just to make money. If you can’t make money in Korea, there is no reason to stay there.

It’s not that it has never used this weapon. In July 2021, Apple’s lawyers threatened to withdraw from the UK market if the British court ordered the collection of “unacceptable” patent fees.

The situation in the UK is a bit different because Brexit makes it more difficult and expensive to run any international business there. South Korea did not have this kind of political problem before, but now it has appeared.

Many countries/regions are conducting antitrust investigations or lawsuits, which may also eventually force Apple to rethink how it operates. For example, France will hear a case of abuse of contract terms in the App Store on September 17, 2021.

In the United States, the President also signed an executive order specifically to encourage small businesses to enter the market dominated by large technology companies, thereby strengthening market competition.

In addition, the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee also announced comprehensive antitrust legislation, which is also aimed at large technology companies such as Apple and Google.

Global impact

We believe that the reason why Apple will struggle with South Korea is not only to strengthen privacy protection but also to protect its own interests in other places through this stance.

It is impossible for Apple to withdraw from the United States, but if governments in other countries/regions think they will lose the tech giant because of this, they may think twice. If they think they will lose Google, they will also have scruples, because Google’s services are very important to many companies.

There is no doubt that Apple’s withdrawal from a certain market is certainly not a good thing. But Facebook did get what it wanted recently by threatening to withdraw certain services in Australia.

Legislation for large technology companies around the world has been introduced one after another to ensure that they do not override the law. Apple’s ignorance of government requests is not encouraging, but if they think it’s more financially feasible to pay fines or cancel their business, then in theory it is also a choice they might make.

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Samsung Expands DIY Repair Program to Include Galaxy S23, Z Fold 5, Flip 5, and More

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Samsung DIY repairing

Samsung is making it easier for users to fix their devices by expanding its DIY repair program. In a recent announcement, Samsung shared that over a dozen new devices will be included in the Self-Repair program. Among them are the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5, marking the introduction of DIY repair options for Samsung’s foldable phones.

The Self-Repair program will provide users with access to parts and guides for fixing their devices at home. Samsung [Samsung Newsroom Post] is taking a step towards empowering users to take control of their device maintenance, offering support for popular devices like the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5 in this latest expansion.

Until now, Samsung mainly provided DIY repair options for its regular smartphones, tablets, and laptops. However, when it came to the more intricate foldable models like the Galaxy Fold and Flip, the company limited users to professional repair services due to the complexity of these devices.

Now, in a noteworthy move, Samsung is expanding its DIY repair support to include its foldable models, starting with the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5. This means users will soon have the option to tackle repairs at home, marking a shift in Samsung’s approach to empower users in maintaining and fixing their foldable devices.

This development follows Google’s recent introduction of DIY repair options for its Pixel Fold, though it’s worth noting that repair parts for the Pixel Fold can be relatively expensive, such as the inner screen alone costing $900. As Samsung joins the DIY repair trend for foldables, it’ll be interesting to see how this impacts the accessibility and affordability of maintaining these innovative devices.

The full list of new Self-Repair options for Galaxy devices includes:

  • Galaxy Z Fold 5
  • Galaxy Z Flip 5
  • Galaxy S23
  • Galaxy S23+
  • Galaxy S23 Ultra
  • Galaxy S23 FE
  • Galaxy A05s
  • Galaxy Tab S9
  • Galaxy Tab S9+
  • Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra
  • Galaxy Tab S9 FE
  • Galaxy Tab S9+ FE
  • Galaxy Tab A9
  • Galaxy Tab A9+
  • Galaxy Book 2 Pro (15-inch)
  • Galaxy Book 2 Pro 360 (15-inch)

Samsung is making its Self-Repair program available to more people around the world. The program is spreading to South Korea and over 30 European countries, including places like Denmark, Greece, Hungary, and Portugal. However, it’s important to note that, as of now, these new devices are not yet supported in the United States, and parts are not available from Samsung’s retail partner, iFixit.

via:- 9to5google/samsungnewsroom/ifixit

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Huawei

Huawei Quick App Center gets the latest version 13.5.1.201 [APK]

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HUAWEI Quick App Center

Huawei has recently revamped its pre-installed applications, including Huawei Health, Huawei Assistant, and AppGallery. The latest update introduces the Huawei Quick App Center, marking a significant change. This update reflects Huawei’s commitment to enhancing user experience and providing streamlined access to applications.

The latest update for the Quick App Center app comes with version number 13.5.1.201 and the installation size is 74.01 MB. With this new update, the company has fixed some known issue bugs. For a better app experience, you should install this latest build on your Huawei devices, below you can check the download link.

SOFTWARE INFORMATION:-

Application name:

  • Huawei Quick App Center

Update Version:

  • 13.5.1.201

Update Size:

  • 74.01 MB.

DOWNLOAD LINK:-

Huawei Quick App Center V13.5.1.201 APK

Huawei Quick App Center

HUAWEI QUICK APP CENTER:-

As per the official introduction, the Huawei Quick app Center allows users to use and manage apps without installation. Also, this application provides the feature to create the app shortcut on your device’s Home Screen. The best part of the Quick app is that it takes up very little space on your device and it has been updated automatically to increase your work experience.

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Harmony OS

HarmonyOS NEXT Lands in 2024: Huawei CEO Sets Big Goals

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HarmonyOS Next

Huawei’s big boss just hinted at exciting new things for their software in 2024! Expect fresh products built on their latest HarmonyOS NEXT system.

During the Fan Club (Pollen) Annual Conference 2023, Yu Chengdong announced that Huawei plans to reveal several advanced products next year. He also predicted the launch of HarmonyOS NEXT products and improved native application experiences in 2024.

The CEO didn’t share when exactly the new software and native applications would be released, but we can anticipate the official reveal to happen in early 2024.

Huawei needs to make HarmonyOS fully independent and essential without relying on Android libraries soon. Hopefully, the company will speed up its efforts in the coming days.

Many app developers, such as Alipay, McDonald’s, HiPaint, Bank of Communications, and others, have joined native app development for HarmonyOS. The goal is to create a strong app ecosystem independent of Android and iOS.

Huawei is set to offer HarmonyOS-based courses, with approval for 55 projects and over 10 universities planning to launch these courses soon.

Huawei plans to introduce apps in more than 18 categories, focusing on digital and financial sectors. According to Yu Chengdong, these native HarmonyOS applications aim to be smoother, smarter, safer, and more comprehensive compared to iOS and Android.

via:-HC/ND

 

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