Apple’s Phil Schiller Explains Why Valve’s Steam Link App Was Rejected

Megalith

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Marketing chief Phil Schiller says that Apple rejected Valve’s Steam Link app because it violated “a number of guidelines around user generated content, in-app purchases, content codes, etc.” While Schiller could have been more specific, hope for playing Steam games on an iPhone or iPad is not entirely lost, as Apple is still working with Valve to make it happen.

We've discussed these issues with Valve and will continue to work with them to help bring the Steam experience to iOS and AppleTV in a way that complies with the store's guidelines. We put great effort into creating an App Store that provides the very best experience for everyone.
 
That explanation is vague bullshit. They offer no detail about specific violations. Based on his statement, they might as well ban all remote desktop software because it has the potential to violate purchase and content guidelines. They're not giving Valve a fair shake.
 
Cmdrmonkey said:
The real answer is they don’t want the competition. People would stop buying games from the App Store if they could play Steam games on Apple devices.
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yep. and to imagine microsoft was blocked from providing free shit in windows, like a web browser and a media player (at least in europe??) when they DIDN'T block other people from making applications such as theirs.

Why does apple get a pass for doing something worse?
 
I, for one, do not like Steam. The application is very invasive, which is why I do not like it.

If that is one of the rules for Apple, then I agree with them. Keep in mind, I am not a fan of Apple.
 
We've discussed these issues with Valve and will continue to work with them to help bring the Steam experience to iOS and AppleTV in a way that complies with the store's guidelines. We put great effort into creating an App Store that provides the very best experience for everyone.
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I'm guessing that means a payoff.
 
What, they want revenue from any sales made when the user purchases from an iPhone???
 
I suspect some of it is around app purchasing - I can purchase stuff from Steam on my Steam Link (since it's basically just a remote desktop session) and if the apps on iOS did the same thing that would be a bone of contention with Apple. I also suspect some of it is around content, especially content like the game currently on the front page of [H] that let's you play as a shooter shooting up a school :confused:
 
DF-1 said:
yep. and to imagine microsoft was blocked from providing free shit in windows, like a web browser and a media player (at least in europe??) when they DIDN'T block other people from making applications such as theirs.

Why does apple get a pass for doing something worse?
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The simple answer? Many large shareholders of Apple and the board have vast political connections.
 
I still think it's because most of the games on Steam are for Windows machines, not Macs, and that would be supporting the competition. Macs aren't that great of gaming machines, and I swear that Steve Jobs or someone like that put the kibosh on gaming development in order to get the Macs accepted as business machines.

I really did come close to purchasing a iPhone. It was a self-graduation present in December, 2010 after getting my business degree, but at the time, it was a AT&T exclusive. I hate AT&T as a mobile provider, and prefer Verizon, and they were pushing the Motorola Droid X, although iPhone was strongly rumored. I got the Android Droid X, and haven't looked back since. Considering all the restrictions that Apple places on their "playground" verses the open environment of Android, and I feel I made the better choice.
 
ZLoth said:
I really did come close to purchasing a iPhone. It was a self-graduation present in December, 2010 after getting my business degree, but at the time, it was a AT&T exclusive. I hate AT&T as a mobile provider, and prefer Verizon, and they were pushing the Motorola Droid X, although iPhone was strongly rumored. I got the Android Droid X, and haven't looked back since. Considering all the restrictions that Apple places on their "playground" verses the open environment of Android, and I feel I made the better choice.
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Just fact checking for you. The iPhone 4 was released in summer 2010, a few weeks before the Droid X (this was before Apple switched to fall releases). It was the first to not be carrier exclusive. The 4s wasn't released until Fall 2011; though I don't recall it being heavily rumored (they're never as secret as Apple pretends) maybe they were. I had only had Android and Windows phones at that point (and prior festure phones going further back).
 
My son is pretty much done with his Apple devices after this. He's only 14, but I built him a mid range rig recently (birthday present, and for homework), and he's all of a sudden PC all the way. His Mom purchased an iPad for him a year before I built his PC, and he loved it, until this happened.
 
phobos512 said:
Just fact checking for you. The iPhone 4 was released in summer 2010, a few weeks before the Droid X (this was before Apple switched to fall releases). It was the first to not be carrier exclusive.
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All that I know is that iPhones were not carried by Verizon until early 2011. Part of it was hardware (Verizon is CDMA while AT&T was GSM), part of it was business agreements. Either way, the Droid X was a pretty good phone for it's time, but was horribly outdated by the time the S5 came out. I still wish there was a camera button at the top though.

(Doing Google Search...) Here is an article from Wired from January, 2011: Verizon Wireless Finally Gets Apple's iPhone with a similar article from Reuters. The announce date was January 11th, 2011, with a sale date of February, 2011.
 
The reasons are pretty clear to me, which steam link allow to go buy games without going through Apple system.

Apple have always been blocking apps that have purchasing without going through their payment system.

The problem for this one is it's essentially remote desktop, it seems to be in a gray zone, where Apple still consider as violation.
 
ZeqOBpf6 said:
Are you talking the desktop application or the app? Invasive how?
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The desktop application. All I can tell you is the one time I installed it, I had to wipe the computer and reinstall the OS in order to get the computer to act reasonable again. It was as the application hooked every Windows event. It does not clean up (last time I tried) after itself when you remove it either.

We have a dedicated system, at work, with Steam on it, due to the impact it has on the computer. It seems to require almost all security measures to be disabled in order to work correctly and that may be part of the issue.
 
ZeqOBpf6 said:
Are you talking the desktop application or the app? Invasive how?
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It's not he just wants a reason to bitch.

It's ok steam doesn't need apple Android has something like 3 times the market share apple does.

Apple is just taking it's ball and going home

And honestly who cares?
 
IRSmurf said:
That explanation is vague bullshit. They offer no detail about specific violations. Based on his statement, they might as well ban all remote desktop software because it has the potential to violate purchase and content guidelines. They're not giving Valve a fair shake.
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basically it comes down to the fact that you don't have to buy the game directly through the app thus apple can't guarantee they get their percentage of the sale. this is the reason why they rejected it, not because it violates any of their rules..
 
Apple already has regenerative technology. Someone takes a bite out of it and it grows right back.
 
Screw 'em. I would keep Steam off of IOS and let those interested by an Android device instead. If enough developers took this stance it wouldnt be long until Apple's store was a wasteland.
 
DF-1 said:
yep. and to imagine microsoft was blocked from providing free shit in windows, like a web browser and a media player (at least in europe??) when they DIDN'T block other people from making applications such as theirs.

Why does apple get a pass for doing something worse?
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Because they have jack shit for market-share.

Their app store is only successful because they cater to the pricier market, which means they target more gamers with money to blow. High attach rate for software does not mean they have a high percentage of hardware sales.

When Microsoft has 95% desktop market-share by-default, you get to jump through regulatory hoops. Once Apple can say the same, then you have a case.
 
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