“Following Nancy Pelosi’s ‘poor Tim’ comment earlier this week, Apple today is again the target of yet another politician,” Chance Miller reports for 9to5Mac. “This time, Massachusetts senator and potential Hillary Clinton running mate Elizabeth Warren has slammed Apple, Google, and Amazon for using their size to ‘snuff out competition.'”
“Warren’s comments came during a speech in Washington at event called ‘America’s Monopoly Problem,'” Miller reports. “Specifically referring to Apple, Warren accused the company of placing conditions on competitors that make it harder for them to offer their own services, specifically referring to Apple Music. Apple ‘has placed conditions on its rivals that make it difficult for them to offer competitive streaming services,’ Warren said.”
Miller reports, “Apple has been embroiled in politics several times in recent weeks.”
Read more in the full article here.
“Spotify, which has complained about the fee Apple charges music services — and other services — that sign up subscribers using its iOS platform, was happy to comment,” Peter Kafka reports for Recode. “Here’s Jonathan Prince, who runs communications and public policy for the streaming music company: ‘Apple has long used its control of iOS to squash competition in music, driving up the prices of its competitors, inappropriately forbidding us from telling our customers about lower prices, and giving itself unfair advantages across its platform through everything from the lock screen to Siri. You know there’s something wrong when Apple makes more off a Spotify subscription than it does off an Apple Music subscription and doesn’t share any of that with the music industry. They want to have their cake and eat everyone else’s too.’
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: These are Apple’s platforms, built from the ground up. Apple owns them. Hence, Apple can charge what they like for the use of their App Store infrastructure.
Anyone who doesn’t like it, including Spotify or… oh, we don’t know, the developers of the “Make Me Indian” app 😉 can go to other smartphone platforms, including one with 82.6% market share as measured by units shipped which — drumroll, please — neatly negates any and all imperiously vapid claims of Apple having a “monopoly” in smartphones.
SEE ALSO:
Apple CEO Tim Cook has billions of reasons to raise money for the GOP – June 29, 2016
Apple’s politics may be hurting its brand – June 29, 2016
Nancy Pelosi blasts Apple CEO Tim Cook for hosting GOP fundraiser – June 28, 2016
Apple’s detestable moral hypocrisy – June 21, 2016
Apple CEO Cook to host Paul Ryan fundraiser as company tries to strengthen relationships with key Republicans – June 20, 2016
Cramer: Apple’s Tim Cook is ‘patriotic’ on taxes – December 21, 2015
Apple CEO Tim Cook is absolutely right – and wrong – on U.S. corporate tax policy – December 20, 2015
Apple CEO calls corporate tax rap ‘total political crap’ – December 18, 2015
Apple avoids $59.2 billion U.S. tax bill – October 7, 2015
U.S. companies now have $2.1 trillion overseas to avoid corporate taxes – March 4, 2015
Intel CFO: Obama repatriation tax proposal ‘lipstick on a pig’ – February 4, 2015
U.S. Congress, Obama take Apple CEO Cook’s advice, eye corporate tax changes – February 3, 2015
Obama targets foreign profits with tax proposal, Republicans skeptical – February 2, 2015
Senator Rand Paul finds Democratic partner for tax repatriation holiday – January 30, 2015
Businesses hopeful Republican control of U.S. Congress will break tax-reform gridlock – November 5, 2014
Not in Taxes anymore: On site at Apple’s famous Irish ‘headquarters’ – November 2, 2013
Regan: U.S. tax code spurs loveless foreign corporate ‘marriages’ – May 13, 2014
Ireland to close Apple’s tax loophole, but leave bigger one open – October 15, 2013
G20 think tank OECD proposes blueprint for global crackdown on tax avoidance – July 19, 2013
Thomas Sowell on Apple, corporate taxes, and ‘the road to serfdom’ – May 28, 2013
Taxing Apple just taxes you – May 24, 2013
Don’t tax Apple, tax its shareholders – May 24, 2013
If Apple paid more tax, we might pay less or something – May 22, 2013
Apple CEO Tim Cook pounds another nail into the Keynesian coffin – May 22, 2013
Apple CEO Cook makes no apology for company’s tax strategy – May 22, 2013
Unfortunately, this severely misinformed political hack is likely the next Vice President.
Of course the Major-Domo of the DNC who is trying to “snuff out competition.”
How ironic.
Hillary isn’t going to pick her. They are way to opposite for that to happy. But Liz does seem like she’s going off the deep end lately
Liz, Liz, Liz, you ignorant fool.
First, the reason Apple is so big is that they please their users and thus their users keep coming back.
Second, how is a company that doesn’t even come close to having 50% market share a monopoly?
Third, the reason Apple’s products work so well, and so much better than their competitors, is that Apple is very strict about what goes into THEIR ecosystem. If shit goes in, e.g., Android and Windows, it often turns the system into shit.
Fourth, if Apple is such an evil monopoly why is its user satisfaction numbers through the roof. In fact, if you take the % of users who are very satisfied with their Apple products and subtract it from 100%, you will get the user satisfaction with the political hacks like you inhabiting DC.
Liz, I once thought you were a person with integrity. Then you became a politician.
A “person of integrity” does not pretend to be a native American in order to get ahead.
Fauxahontas.
No one really cares about your family or the stories you were told growing up, but we do care about your integrity. The “Cherokee flap” is important because it shows what you have done when you thought no one was watching. It is important because it shows what you have done when you thought you wouldn’t get caught. And it is important because it reveals you still think you can get away with it now that you have been caught. — Cherokee genealogist Twila Barnes
… is about Warren accusing Apple et. al. of attempting to dominate certain markets.
And she is telling the TRUTH, there.
Apple IS trying to dominate those markets! Markets it (at a minimum) helped to CREATE. They COULD finish the job, but they are, at least, giving their competitors a chance. Poor chance, but a chance.
This is what companies DO, in the US.
It seems a step down from her normal critiques of Wall Street for their cheating and lying and stealing money, also a standard American practice, but along the same line.
YOUR crap, First 2014, is OFF-TOPIC!
Are YOUR politics interfering with your thought process?
Where was all this concern about monopoly when Microsoft and IBM were better examples market dominance by way of unfair / illegal practices … oh just getting to / out of law school.
Keep Blabbing Liz and maybe Apple WILL help sponsor the RNC Main Event, just to spite you!
Way to go!
…the “Make Me Indian” app…
ROTFLMFAO! Classic, MDN. Classic.
Nancy Pelosi condescends to “Poor Tim” because he supported Paul Ryan (as if we were supposed to have a two-party system or something). Meanwhile Liz Warren piles on Apple because the have a successful product. The nerve of Apple. They are supposed to fail and then get subsidies from senators, to whom they will be forever beholden. “Poor Tim” clearly does not understand how “the system” is supposed to work.
Sadly, Apple has taken a lot of hard hits from the Democratic regime — which I voted for, by the way. Seriously makes me wonder if Apple would have been better off under another regime.
The hard hits I am referring to include the Koh and Cote decisions favoring Samsung and Amazon (and which pretty much precludes any action against Google Android). And the recent “you work for us, so unlock the damn iPhone” privacy jailbreak rhubarb, as in: “you work for _US_ FBI”.
In sum, the current regime has not been particularly kind to Apple, in my view. Or even just fair.
That’s the one thing about regimes. Once they learn to torture and intimidate one group they can learn to intimidate and torture anyone. Apple is about empowering people. That’s a direct threat to that regime.
It will last until the election is over when the eagled beast will turn away from trashing its nest and descend its talons of torture and oppression onto the free and civilized world.
Unless….
Delegates vote their conscience?
I don’t think that will make a difference, the president from one party instigating war and torture, the other party keeping Guantanamo on the Bay Resort alive and well.
Right now people from there can vote how they please, in the end it’s a Hilarious Dump result. When a country has 80% of their history of being at war, the regime’s ideology of being a war mongering nation can be considered a success regardless of which party.
I was thinking of another unless….
Liz: you flunked; Research 100, Analysis 101,and Public Speaking 102. You passed, with flying colors, Creating Fantasy Factoids 101, Living in Unreality 202, and Obfuscated Thinking 300. Congratulations you’re a politician. /s 🖖😀⌚️
Apparently E. Warren is a lame brained idiot that doesn’t know what she is talking about. She uses baseless slurs to denigrate the opposition. She is worse than D. Trump when he criticizes his opposition.
1. There are a myriad of ways to engage with Spotify these days. People can download the app and listen to it on their personal computers, television sets, cars, speaker systems, game systems, and smartphones. My guess is Apple’s App Store represents under 5 percent of all these devices in the U.S. It doesn’t seem like Apple has a monopoly on connected devices that can run apps like Spotify.
2. The App Store is like most stores , and there is a markup for the product. Many brick and mortar stores have around a 100 percent markup on many products. The Apple App Store markup is 30 percent. After a set time that markup decreases if the product is subscription based. I think it would be un-American for a legislating body to determine what markup a store should have, especially for a store that has less than 5 percent share of connected devices.
3. Some people claim it is unfair that Apple excludes certain apps from their App Store. Last time I noticed, the laws of the land, in the majority of cases, don’t determine the products a particular store can or can not sell. Again, this is un-American and against basic freedom.
4. I know some on the Left wish America was a Communist country, and all people made the same income and all companies charged the same amount for the same product, but we are a country built on entrepreneurship and innovation. Without these instincts America would of never been discovered, and thus the world would still be wallowing in a tyrant’s rule, where any glimmer of freedom would be snuffed by the wisp of a King’s robe. I should know because I’m a King deemed by God. *finger in mouth like Dr. Evil. Now, where’s my pizza!
Horrible comeback MDN with the make me an Indian app, racist company are you? Seriously? I think I will delete your app. Even though I am not Indian, just reading your comment sounds racist. We should boycott your stupid company. I understand and am an Apple fanatic but you took it to a whole different level now!!!
You couldn’t be any stupider even if you were the offspring of Joe Biden and Fauxahontas herself.
That wasn’t racist. You either don’t know Warren’s history or you are devoid of the satirical humor gene.
Her threatening Apple after they show the smallest level of support for her political opponent is the definition of Tyranny.
ugh, “She Who Walks With Caucasian DNA” say white man speak’em with forked tongue..heap big trouble.
circle the vaginas, Fauxcohantas is on the warpath!
heyaheyaheyaheyaheya HEYA!heyaheyaheyaheay
You’re making fun of women and minorities again, botvinnik. How like you. How like Donald Trump. But, that’s why half the world loves the both of you, isn’t it? Because that half loathes political correctness, which is a protocol that respects all people equally— whether they deserve it or not, isn’t that the beef? That somehow they don’t deserve it?
That’s not the root of PC. It’s nothing so civil as you say. Dig deeper…
PC doesn’t respect the people it destroys, lame brain.
I was ridiculing her fake feminism and her outright lie that she is an American Indian, not that she is female…she’s used the Injun Schtick to finance her education and further her political career.
A very sensible answer. 🤔 And I must admit your comment was funny enough to vote for… made me think of The Firesign Theater or Mort Sahl, George Carlin, etc 😄
I loved Firesign Theater…remember the soul station disc jockey?…”this song goes out to all you muthafückas in love…”
Don’t Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers was considered at the time the best comedy album ever released, and The Giant Rat of Sumatra amused me with its droll sendup of Sherlock Holmes, festooned with puns like a drunk tangled in a string of Christmas tree lights 😜
This is why Steve Jobs was a smarter boss.
Tim, I mean, rich Tim, just doesn’t get it.
If he is so hell bent on looking out for the shareholders (paying taxes) he would increase the dividend to something worth talking about. Congress should help all these companies. If they are a publicly traded company after three years of being in business they should be require to pay out 80% of the profits to shareholders. Also, any company doing substantial business in the US will have do the same, no matter the country of origin. No exclusions.
Just so you don’t feel like I’m picking on rich Tim, Tim will make more money then he will ever know what to do with under this scheme. So will every CEO in the US. These, CEO guys go to Washington begging for something everyday.
The Richie Riches are in the court system all the time. Take Trump for example. Yes they need to pay more taxes. They use a lot more services at a much higher level of government. Senators, Representatives, State Department, President, and military.
Now, I understand many won’t think this is reasonable, I get it, you have been drinking lead tainted water so long that some brain cells are dead and you no longer know what your interest are. That’s thanks to people thinking they can run a city, town, state, government like a business whose main objective is to make money or save money. And what is silly save money to what end. So that you will spend it on some service or product that will be taxed along with the profits from such a sell or service. Man!
This sad, goto the United States, but don’t drink the water. You start to wonder if there is any connection to the water, lead, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Forget poor Tim. Poor us.
Your argument had merit in the beginning- however you ended up in a different topic. If you don’t like your investment, sell it. As for the lead in the water analogy…you went too far outside the scope of this forum. (Not going there today)
Why should I have to sell any of my investments. The people that work at my companies are being compensated for their work. They have no claim on my money. Growth is good, but even it should be measured, that measure is fairly applied to all, 80% of the profits should be returned to the owners of the company. Why should I have to wait for the stock price to go up in order to receive the value that money has caused, the investment? Why must I be dependent on the next guy or lady placing a new bet, by buying shares at a higher price? Why should the CEOs get to wheel billions of dollars in influence when clearly those billions, that a company makes, is not their personal fortune. As it been said before, “It’s our money”, the shareholders that is. Steve Jobs advise, “… stay hungry…” there’s no need if you are sitting on more money then you could possibly waste.
Those that believe in debt keeping a company hungry, those are bankers or those that will make a commission off of the foolishness. Why, because the same effect can be achieved by paying out those dollars to shareholders. Guest what? Now you have a true evaluation of how well a company is do and value of what the shares should be.
Here is other thing, as the company grows so does the 20% it gets to keep. Maybe they feel a bit of pressure to grow that dollar amount.
Or stay private, no harm in that. Ask Dell.
Publicly traded companies “should be require to pay out 80% of the profits to shareholders.” OMFG!!! NO!!!!! A thousand times NO!!!!!
Shareholders have a right to buy and sell as they please. If shareholders don’t like a company’s management direction they should sell their shares. To impose a Government mandate for companies to fork over a certain amount of their profit to shareholders every year regardless of economic conditions would be extraordinarily invasive and preclude a companies leadership from making internal investment choices that could help the company see a very profitable future. Terrible, terrible, terrible idea.
Where, how, what are you talking about. Shareholders would not be managers of the the company in anyway. They would be receiving their justify share of what their investment created, profits. Instead of just giving lip service about making money for the shareholder it would now be a real concern for a CEO.
As for employees, CEOs included, they could own shares. When dividends are paid out, they make money too. Guess what. This method allows them to share in the profits their labor creates to a much greater degree. So, an employee with 2000 shares, and a dividend of 3 dollars a share per quarter will make 12,000 extra dollars a year. A CEO with 100,000 shares, that’s 1,200,000 dollars extra a year. Now, I know these CEOs don’t consider that any money but to make more all they have to do is own more shares. To use Apple as an example, Tim Cook has 950,000 plus shares of Apple. At 3 dollars a quarter, he would make 11,400,000 dollars per year. No need to talk bonus every year, hey. All he would have to do to make more money is make more profit. All publicly trade should have to pay shareholders 80%, banks included. I would bet this would create a tremendous amount of economic activity, and make having a 401K worth considering as a real retirement income vehicle.
If Wyle E. Warren shakes her head anymore in anger, it’s going to fall off! She has essential tremors like Kate Hepburn did.
Shake Shake Shake, Shake Shake Shake, you’re so snooty, you’re so snooty!
Much as I appreciate Elizabeth Warren’s insights regarding the parasitism and abuse going on over at WallNut Street, it has become obvious that she’s just another DemoCrap Party Hack. She’s caved on several unethical aspects of the party, pointing out that she’s just another compromised and puppeted politician. 😛
To hell with both parties.
I recommend the Glenlivet on a sideboard, a hot water bottle (or a complacent cat) and an overstuffed armchair. The book you will be reading falls open to T. L. Sherred’s 1947 novelette E For Effort. It is a parable of technology, politics, and human nature. It will remind you that politicians are fragile humans, that technology is a blessing and a curse, and that belief systems can be damaged beyond repair when ideals and reality collide. You close the book with a sigh, and switch on Game of Thrones. If only dragons were real…
Thank you dahling! I’ve found a source for “First Person Peculiar” which contains the novella. 🙂
This is how Nancy and the dems plays.
If you do something they don’t like, they come after you as a wolf pack to harass you and destroy you.
If Cook would have bowed at Hilary’s alter, this would have never happened.
How about Microsoft, Liz? Yeah, that what I thought.
Democrats despise capitalists but they love to take the money they earn.
Reminds me of the clueless DOJ and self-servingly approving true monopolist Amazon CEO Jeff Bozos legal collusion against Apple & eBooks.
The first clue of this unconsidered argument of hers is the strength of an ecosystem MEANS one company to administer, design and run it. Others are more than welcome to do the same. Problem is, they all suck at it.
Senator Warren has more integrity and intellect than the combined list of commentators here.
Tim Cook is an asshat.
Apple is a comapany that stopped innovating and started practicing protectionism long before the presumptuous Republican nominee started spewing his jingoism across the country.]
E.Warren. is a nasty mouthed socialist. For some reason socialists want to punish success thereby discouraging it.
B.O.(literally) is a socialist. No wonder there have been 7 years of a poor performing economy with temporary low paying jobs that have become career jobs and do not provide for families thereby creating the need for handouts. Socialists do not know how to grow economies also creating the need for handouts. They always pay for their grandiose schemes with other peoples money, many of which fail. Socialists apparently do not know that capitalism creates the capital wealth that socialism feeds off of. Capitalism pays socialism’s bills. Without capitalism, socialism could not exist, as all socialism devotees would starve because they are parasitic in nature. There would be no wealth to tax. Socialism has taken the U.S. from being a wealthy country to being a debtor nation with enormous debt. We owe other countries in the vicinity of $20 TRILLION and climbing. Socialists are spending the U.S. into bankruptcy.
Why are democrats so verbally nasty? They are the ones bringing this country to its knees. They are not progressive in nature as they do not make progress. The only thing progressive about them is their tax policies. Even E. Warren did not earn her own way financially. Her ivy league schooling was apparently gifted to her for a reason that may not be true.