

All the external private APIs referenced by iBooks.app version 1.2.1 - mikecane
https://gist.github.com/830865

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jarin
I think it's probably within Apple's rights to use their own private APIs.

People don't seem to get too upset about Facebook or Twitter not providing
access to their own internal APIs, yes it's limiting as a developer but them's
the breaks. You get to choose between system-level access (Android) or money
(iOS).

WebOS doesn't give you access to private APIs either, which I suspect will
actually be a really big benefit to their ecosystem.

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larsberg
> I think it's probably within Apple's rights to use their own private APIs.

Only if it doesn't provide applications produced by other parts of their
company (say, iBooks) an unfair advantage over other e-Readers on the platform
(GoodReader, Kindle, etc.). Otherwise, how is this situation any different
from Microsoft's exposure of internal APIs for the Office team that Novell was
not aware of? I only ask this question in a structural sense, not legally, as
IANAL and there's probably a monopoly position test or two that people could
argue about for another 200 comments.

[http://www.internetnews.com/bus-
news/article.php/3435371/Nov...](http://www.internetnews.com/bus-
news/article.php/3435371/Novell-Files-WordPerfect-Suit-Against-Microsoft.htm)

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ugh
Apple has no monopoly on digital book readers or digital books. It doesn’t
even have a dominant position in the market. That’s what matters.

~~~
saurik
The idea is that they might use a controlling interest in another market
(mobile application sales and distribution; despite the fact that Android is
or at least will soon be the dominant hardware platform, its application
market sucks) in order to gain an unfair advantage in another market (digital
books). The fact that Apple is not already leader in digital books is almost a
prerequisite to make this claim.

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jsf
One of the benefits of this could be allowing them to drive-test private APIs
in order to eventually make (or not, or alternative ones) them public
eventually.

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Xuzz
Note that this isn't even all their private APIs: Just the private classes.

They also use tons of undocumented, private APIs on public classes -- some of
which are _very_ useful.

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efnx
There's also nothing keeping someone from writing their own versions of these
private APIs. Though I do keep the thought that Apple is effectively nerfing
the competition in the back of my mind. Very far back.

