
Apple's responsibility as a superpower - ph0rque
http://37signals.com/svn/posts/2638-apples-responsibility-as-a-superpower
======
cletus
I don't like this post for several reasons.

1\. The author worries about Apple crowning a successor. What they're
advocating is HTML5, which is essentially an open standard, where Flash is of
course proprietary.

2\. The premise of the article is that Apple has the power to kill anything
they set their mind to. It uses the lazy argument of the slippery slope or
thin end of the wedge ("What's next?"). It's simply fearmongering;

3\. It mistakes cause and effect. A classic example of this was Intel's
original Centrino platform, which became the basis of Intel's success (after
the Pentium 4 debacle) for years. At the time it launched Intel spent $150m+
on marketing it. Sadly, many observers attributed its success to that
marketing campaign when in fact the lesson is:

 _Good products sell themselves._

Centrino succeeded because it was a good product.

Flash came about at a time to solve a problem of creating "rich" Internet
applications ("RIAs") when it wasn't possible any other way. That's no longer
the case with a plethroa of Javascript frameworks and browsers with fast
Javascript engines in them.

The use case for Flash was going away anyway. Apple just hastened its
inevitable demise. They haven't killed it. They just threw some oil on the
fire that was already burning down the house.

4\. Apple is on the outs with a bunch of other companies? Large companies are
complex creatures. You will find them competing savagely on one level while
cooperating on another. But the real reason they don't like Apple? Nothing
breeds contempt like success.

5\. Blu-ray. Optical storage, like Flash, is dying. Apple didn't pick a side
in the HD-DVD vs Blu-ray "war". Some might call this realpolitik. Personally,
I think they took a long term view that the winner was irrelevant. The well is
drying up. Who controls it doesn't matter anymore.

6\. Apple is by far the company that has demonstrated an utter devotion to the
paramount importance of the user experience. Now you can disagree with some of
the decisions they've made but, on the whole, no company has engendered quite
the same loyalty and fervour that Apple has _for good reason_.

They're still at the mercy of the market as a whole.

~~~
Supermighty
Point 2: Apple has a great deal of influence to kill a great deal. Recently
they depreciated Java on the Mac.

How many $30 desktop apps will you sell if users also have to download a 200MB
Java runtime?

Don't fool yourself, Apple has to power to drive adoption (USB) or kill it
(Flash, Jave, et al).

~~~
Aykroyd
Maybe, I'm mistaken but when I think of desktop Java apps pretty much the only
significant ones that I come up with are IntelliJ (which I use) and Eclipse.
And I'd much prefer something native to the resource hogging of IntelliJ.

I don't think they're killing off a big industry by ditching java on the mac.
It's just potentially going to make things more of a pain for those of us who
write server-side java code on our Macs. Do you think their move will have an
effect on that industry?

~~~
chc
Cyberduck is a very popular FTP client for the Mac, and Vuze is a fairly
popular Bittorrent client on all platforms.

------
arjunnarayan
The problem with Apple is that they try and project some moral superiority
while actually having a troubled record when it comes to moral actions. They
claim to be champions of open standards, open architectures, etc. And
oftentimes, they do exceedingly well: The early adoption of USB, a beautiful
working integrated Java platform, HTML5 and web standards are all examples
where Apple championed openness and followed through.

However, there is this other side: where Apple seizes a chunk of territory
that they mark out as "ours to play with" and this is roped off and defended
at all costs. When Google decided that cellphones needed an open option to
keep carriers and developers honest, Apple reacted vociferously against this
perceived incursion into their territory. And this is, I believe, what dhh is
articulating unease about. Today Goliath Apple is fighting the good fight,
taking down the monolithic clunky developer-terrorizing nonsense that is Flash
in the name of open standards and on behalf of Davidesque HTML5. But tomorrow,
there's no telling if Apple is suddenly going to decide that this is "their
territory" and they are going to defend it against all incursions (open or
not) at all costs. And that is worrying.

Apple's moral standards seem arbitrary, adopted post-hoc to conveniently
justify a pre-ordained course of action. And that makes everyone fearful of
their next move.

~~~
ceejayoz
> When Google decided that cellphones needed an open option to keep carriers
> and developers honest...

Google hasn't kept the carriers honest, and I've yet to hear of an iOS app
that quietly copies all your SMS messages off to some server in Russia.

~~~
recoiledsnake
[http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/15YearOld-Sneaks-
iPhone-T...](http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/15YearOld-Sneaks-iPhone-
Tethering-App-Past-Apple-109491)

If someone was able to sneak something like tethering, I don't think it's a
far stretch for text messages.

~~~
ceejayoz
Tethering is possible because it doesn't require accessing any other app's
data. SMSes are walled off. That does not appear to be the case with Android,
which allows apps to send/read SMSes.

------
mattmaroon
I think Apple's not going to "win" the battle with Flash. They're simply going
to drive a portion of their customers to Android in the interim due to
fighting it. Like many actual wars, everyone involved will lose.

When I use my iPad, the #1 reason I put it down and pick up my laptop is that
I want to watch a video (quite frequently one I found here in fact) or play a
game that I can't. It's to the point where I now just dig out the laptop if I
want to read Hacker News as a result. I made the mistake of taking the iPad on
a trip without my laptop, only to find I couldn't view the website of any good
restaurant. (Granted there's no reason those websites should be one giant SWF,
but they are.)

You don't realize how much Flash stuff is on the web until you use an iPad.

~~~
moxiemk1
Counter-anecdote: you don't know how much on the web _isn't_ flash until you
pick up an iPad.

We must use very different subsets of the Internet, because the videos I run
into (on random, lower profile sites, no less) don't require flash.

Honestly, the thing that drives me from my iPad to pick up a laptop (which
doesn't happen very often) is iPad-specific websites that don't let me opt-out
and use their normal website. This has (unfortunately) been happening more and
more lately.

~~~
mattmaroon
We appear to use at least some of the same subsets since we're both here. Just
last week there were two videos on the front page the one time I looked that
wouldn't play. This happens in my Google Reader on a daily basis as well.

As a Facebook Game developer I probably see more Flash than normal people,
though the number of people who play Flash games on Facebook alone numbers in
the hundreds of millions.

~~~
smackfu
Facebook games are also really bad in my experience at just not working on the
iPad. No error message, no suggestion to try their standalone app, no nothing.

------
bbuffone
I have no worries about this, I can throw out my $199 iPhone and buy a new
phone. The same apps I use (Planets vs Zombies, actually that is about it)
will be available on the new phone shortly. Phones and its OS are dispensable.
that is the great thing about them. As long as it can make a call and receive
data the real utility of the phone will always be available.

The rest of it is just entertainment.

~~~
tav
And what about the time and money spent by people developing skills for the
Apple ecosystem — Objective-C, XCode, iTunes partnerships, etc? There's a
network effect in play here and the more territories that Apple dominates, the
easier it becomes to parlay with inertia...

~~~
ceejayoz
Most of those developers hadn't heard of Objective-C just a few years ago. If
something compelling enough comes around, they'll switch again.

------
credo
Companies compete with each other and there are winners and losers.

When Google rolled out free Google Maps and navigation apps, they were
directly attacking companies like Garmin and TomTom

Now frankly, it is reasonable to sympathize with many companies whose paid
offerings are under attack by "free" products, but would you ask Google to
recognize itself as a "superpower" and stop killing GPS navigation companies ?

~~~
davidw
> Companies compete with each other and there are winners and losers.

The unnerving thing about this industry, though, is that _sometimes_ this
"winning and losing" is fast and close to total, whereas in other industries,
many players can continue to compete in the same field. Think about
Microsoft's share of desktop operating systems at their peak vs car companies.

~~~
glhaynes
What examples of that can you think of other than Windows?

Edit: and things that were extensions of the Windows monopoly such as IE.

~~~
davidw
VHS standard, eBay, Microsoft Office probably merits its own entry. x86 in
terms of desktop hardware.

------
shadowsun7
This is a rather paranoid argument of what Apple _may_ do, instead of what
it's actually done. Even David admits that a) he's happy to see Flash go b)
we're making a move towards open standards and c) Adobe deserves the walloping
that they're getting.

Apple's done things like this before - getting rid of floppy drives, for
instance, before anyone else did. (And they're very quick to remind us of
this). But whether the move to 'attack' Flash is a bad thing isn't clear.

Apple seems to be more obsessed with delivering the perfect user experience -
and they don't give me the impression that they're picking battles for the
sake of picking battles. Whether Flash (or any other technology, for that
matter) gets excluded is a direct result of this obsession. Which is the right
way of going about it, of course.

------
kloc
I don't think that Apple is a superpower when it comes to promoting or killing
technologies, be it on desktop or mobile. It is surely important in the whole
scheme of things but certainly not the king maker. With the rise Android and
Windows mobile 7 , apple and its iOS will matter even less. Here in India one
can get an Android phone(1.6) for 7000rs( 120 $) which is a very competitive
price, where iphone 3gs costs around 32000rs ( 650 $). I don't see apple
getting a decisive share of mobile market anywhere outside of US in the
foreseeable future.

~~~
ceejayoz
> Here in India one can get an Android phone(1.6) for 7000rs( 120 $) which is
> a very competitive price, where iphone 3gs costs around 32000rs ( 650 $).

Are they comparable phones? If nothing else, there've been two major Android
OS revisions since 1.6.

~~~
ZeroGravitas
I think his point is they don't need to be comparable. Apple "over-delivers"
because of its core demographic and commitment to a small product range. This
naturally limits adoption outside that demographic. Though Apple perhaps
doesn't care because they're targeting the richest consumers in the richest
nations.

------
steveklabnik
In discussions with friends, they've asked me why I tend to defend Apple and
dislike Microsoft, when it seems that they both do the same things. Why is
FairPlay okay, but PlaysForSure wrong?

For me, it primarily comes down to the fact that Apple has tended to impose
restrictions within its own little empire, and not outside of it; for the
large part, Apple seems to follow the Principle of Least Aggression. Even with
the latest Flash shenanigans, Apple isn't making deals with partners to kill
Flash. They're not trying to ruin support on Android or anything. They're just
not including it by default on the new Airs anymore, and sort of publicly
saying that they think it sucks.

I agree with David, though: Apple's cultural position of power means that if
they want to keep our hearts and minds, they have some responsibility to play
nice.

~~~
kenjackson
Apple's never really had power outside of its empire before. This is a pretty
new position they're in now.

With that said, the difference between MS and Apple is that Apple builds the
full stack. Apple blocking Psystar from creating clones effectively blocks
anyone else from creating Apple products, thus Apple has a lot fewer people to
have to bully. The just keep everyone off their block. With that said, within
the industry, Apple's bullying of Intel is rather legendary, given their small
market position.

Where Apple does dominate they certainly don't mind pushing people around.

MS works with a lot more partners therefore there is a lot more opportunity
for bullying.

My concern with Apple is that while Steve Jobs is brilliant, he also rules
with what seems to be a larger degree of malice. With MS its obvious where
they're going -- where the money is. With Apple that's usually the case, but
sometimes its where Steve is just really mad. There's no single person,
including Bill, at MS who wields that type of power.

~~~
steveklabnik
I dunno, maybe I'm being naive. It seem pretty obvious where Apple is going,
too: whatever makes computers easier to use. Flash on mobile is total trash,
from what I've read (I have yet to try it on my Nexus One, I don't visit sites
with Flash). They've been working on making the music industry a nicer entity
to interact with for years. They've been relentlessly simplifying product
lines. The Mac App store is obviously geared toward making it even easier for
people to install applications. They basically invented the modern smartphone
market, and haven't let AT&T call the shots, to the benefit of consumers.

Is my fanboy showing? :/

~~~
kenjackson
It's showing a little bit :-)

There are plenty of things that would make their computers/products easier to
use, but they don't do them. For example, their rental policy for video is
horrible. I have just stopped renting because I never finish anything. How is
it that Amazon can have a strictly superior policy, but Apple's sucks? I think
this is actually an example where Steve plays the role of Apple CEO and Disney
shareholder at the same time.

When Apple lets me run iOS/OSX in a VM on my Windows box then I'll believe
their main mission is to make computers easier to use. Until then the
bottomline seems to be the thing the thing that cuts across most items at
Apple, like most other companies.

~~~
matwood
_For example, their rental policy for video is horrible. I have just stopped
renting because I never finish anything. How is it that Amazon can have a
strictly superior policy, but Apple's sucks?_

Is this 100% on Apple though? I know there was some hoopla awhile back before
variable pricing came into play where the RIAA allowed Amazon to set lower
prices than Apple with their goal being to get Apple to bend to their demands
on pricing. Apple wanted to keep everything at 99c, but the RIAA wanted tiers
and finally got what they wanted.

~~~
kenjackson
I'm talking about video, not audio (unless the RIAA also plays in the video
space too). I've completely moved off of iTunes for music as I prefer
streaming services like Grooveshark and subscription, like Zune Pass.

~~~
matwood
I used audio as a known example of content producers playing Apple and Amazon
against each other. Do you think the MPAA is any less ruthless than the RIAA
when it comes to controlling and pricing their content?

~~~
kenjackson
But I haven't heard Apple say a peep in this case. And Apple is not shy about
saying their being bent over. Also if anything Apple seems enthusiastic about
what they're doing. When they announced the new Apple TV Jobs had no
reservations that they were making this their only streaming model.

Apple could fix this easy... support Amazon VOD. That would be the best thing
for the customer. It would be super easy. Heck, if you're reading Steve, I'll
implement it for you, for 1/2 my standard consulting fee.

------
clawrencewenham
Presumably Apple is obligated to support everything on everything, simply so
it isn't seen as "demonstrating its might".

Apple has said no to technologies like Flash, USB3 and Blu-Ray for their own
reasons and only for their own devices, which is part of how they make those
products good.

If they begin supporting every feasible technology just for the sake of not
being a bully, then their products will start to suck, they will lose their
customers and the power they've been giving them, and then a new kingmaker
will arise. The cycle will continue.

This is an argument for making technology independent of the products that
embody them, which is not realistic.

------
joshuacc
I find this a bit ironic coming from 37signals. Isn't this the sort of
"opinionated" behavior that they champion in Getting Real?

Maybe DHH has a good reason for thinking it's different, but I'd like to see
it spelled out.

~~~
dhh
When you have the might to dictate an entire industry, you have a different
set of responsibilities.

~~~
dailyrorschach
I agree with the basis of this article, re: their responsibility. But, as of
late, I'm not sure we have anything to go on to say that they are acting
poorly.

Pushing web standards seems like a good position for an industry leader to
take. Seems like any large corporate power, like Google, we just have to
expect the worse and hope for the best.

~~~
danieldk
To give one example: for compatibility, it would be tremendously useful if
they released specifications for AirPlay. Eg. Rogue Amoeba had to reverse
engineer it for their AirFoil product.

------
S_A_P
I don't think it was at all irresponsible of them for accepting a half hearted
port of a 10 year old technology that really isn't intended for a touch
screen. HTML 5, CSS3 and other standards saw wider adoption more
quickly(thanks also in part to google)

What is happening here is Apple is streamlining its products in what they hope
will make for a better user experience. It may or may not work out for them,
but there is plenty of choice out there.

Further, this isn't the same situation as the 1990s when Microsoft would gun
for other companies by releasing same-ish products for free to squash others
out of the market. They are just not supporting them if they dont meet their
standards.

~~~
smackfu
Heh. A 10 year old technology like HTML?

~~~
chc
HTML5 is not 10-year-old tech.

------
tav
Empires rise and fall. The same could have been said of Microsoft only 10
years ago. Every platform provider faces this issue of responsibility and
power — whether it be Facebook, Google, Apple or even Twitter.

The really interesting, and perhaps more fundamental, issue is that the
various independent domains of the past (entertainment, communications,
enterprise, gaming, mobile, etc.) are no longer so cleanly segregated and have
been converging quite rapidly in the last few years. This inevitably results
in the emergence of superpowers like Apple.

If we take this to be true, then the question becomes — what do we do about
it? As entrepreneurs/developers/consumers, we fundamentally decide on the
winners in these platform wars. But how do we counter superpower decisions?
Lobby groups? Strategic pacts? Alternative, open, decentralised, systems?

------
richardhenry
Do Apple ship every other item of Mac software on their platform? They don’t?
Then why are they obligated to ship with Flash preinstalled?

It’s up to Adobe to make their own future, not Apple. Perhaps that’s why Adobe
recently unveiled Adobe Edge, and a Flash-to-HTML5 conversion tool.

------
smackfu
What comes to mind: How is what Adobe does with Flash different from what
Apple tried to do with Quicktime? If Apple had its way a few years back, all
the video on the net would be Quicktime Sorenson encoded. Would they be
pushing for open standards then?

~~~
chc
One is a proprietary Web platform that can completely shut people out of a
site and the other is a video codec. Apples and oranges if ever anything was.

~~~
smackfu
Apple has always wanted to make Quicktime a proprietary interactive platform
with a scripting language, UI elements, etc. It used to be used heavily to
make CD-ROMs, where Flash would be used today. Apple just lost that battle.

~~~
chc
At the point in time you're talking about, the _was_ no standard technology to
use. It is, again, not comparable to the proprietary Flash plugin today.

------
brudgers
> _"Blu-Ray, USB3, Java"_

They are all about minimizing Apple's investment in the Mac platform. Each
shows where Apple is heading with the Mac, toward streaming content as what
differentiates platform, away from cutting edge technology as what
differentiates the platform, and away from enterprise sales - not that
enterprise sales are a high priority for Apple beyond getting a continuous
stream of articles written about "recent enterprise adoption." The same cost
reductions criteria could be seen to apply to Flash, but it's more about
sparking development for iOS and the future MacApp store.

------
nanijoe
From the article: (Think what happened or didn’t to Blue-ray, USB3, Java).
\--------- I'm not sure I knew that anything happened to Java and Blu-ray, can
someone help?

~~~
ceejayoz
Apple has stated that they don't see a need to support Blu-ray on Macs, that
USB3 isn't ready for prime-time, and that they're stopping their releases of
their version of Java.

------
davewiner
Great piece, right to the point. What technology is Apple going to declare
illegal next. And what if we depend on it.

