Hacker Read

jacquesm · 2023-01-20 06:12:54

Because that's how Twitter set it up. As a developer you play by their rules, and you can just about forget negotiating an exclusive deal that would reduce the company's rights and increase yours without paying for it.

s73v3r | karma 1357 | avg karma 0.92 · | 2015-04-16 22:50:49+00:00

jblow: So follow them on Twitter? Go to their website? Seriously, you're acting like a developer can never see the outside world after they sign the developer agreement.

viktorcode | karma 1291 | avg karma 2.52 · | 2022-02-04 13:26:48

Bigger developers who pay 30% can do that on their own. Hence the legal lobbying to make platform gatekeepers to cede some ground.

srameshc | karma 4750 | avg karma 7.31 · | 2023-06-03 12:08:03

By now we have seen many times how platforms have turned their back on developers. Twitter, even in the past gave good reason to not do build solely on that platform. At the end, it's their platform and they can choose how they want to run it and developers have no say in that decision.

smoldesu | karma 10042 | avg karma 1.14 · | 2022-12-13 18:40:42

Well, then hopefully you can understand why developers don't want to pay the largest company in the world for restricting their freedom.

xwdv | karma 1003 | avg karma 0.21 · | 2020-08-28 21:57:52

It’s a flawed argument, developers don’t come saying “we’ll give you 30% of our revenue if you let us build on your platform”.

If they don’t like the terms they can simply choose to not develop there.

reply

superbatfish | karma 497 | avg karma 4.14 · | 2017-03-21 15:16:58

>This isn't really the _reason_ that companies have these kinds of policies though

I think it's fair to say that there are multiple reasons. The one you listed is definitely one of them. Joel Spolsky wrote about this a few months ago:

https://www.joelonsoftware.com/2016/12/09/developers-side-pr...

reply

tasqyn | karma 7 | avg karma 0.44 · | 2020-03-31 11:00:34+00:00

because developer has the power to do so...

cube13 | karma 2006 | avg karma 2.48 · | 2012-07-19 16:30:28+00:00

>they complain about paying to be a platform exclusive.

This smells wrong. There's absolutely no benefit for the developer to release an exclusive game on a platform if the developer is paying the platform holder for the exclusive rights. The only way exclusivity benefits a developer is if the platform holder is paying them to stay exclusive.

reply

can16358p | karma 3519 | avg karma 2.4 · | 2020-09-24 21:40:42+00:00

Don't want to pay 30%? Don't develop for the platform then. I really think all these guys trying to change a company's own ecosystem's rules that the company itself created, are paid actors. I haven't seen a more flawed argument then knowing the exact rules of the ecosystem, which is owned by a company, and trying to change it. It's their company, their platform, their rules. It's been the same way since the beginning. Get over it. Simple as that.

sigzero | karma 4147 | avg karma 1.62 · | 2011-01-09 02:00:47+00:00

Then developers can go play in another marketplace if they want. It's a totally "opt in" scenario.

jpcx01 | karma 907 | avg karma 2.04 · | 2009-04-21 11:03:29+00:00

Because its a shitty deal. A good developer wouldn't take it.

amelius | karma 42902 | avg karma 1.63 · | 2020-09-15 23:44:02+00:00

I can't understand why developers take these rules seriously and why they don't just abandon the platform. I guess it must be the money.

harles | karma 1413 | avg karma 5.14 · | 2022-06-20 18:28:05

Some developers want none of that, and even those that do will I’m sure argue the fairness/value. If it’s genuinely a good deal then there’s no reason to not allow competition.

madeofpalk | karma 21444 | avg karma 3.75 · | 2020-06-21 21:54:24+00:00

No, they are not giving developers a choice in reality. They’re forcing developers to offer subscriptions on their platforms where they take a 30% cut. That’s not a choice.

sotojuan | karma 6218 | avg karma 3.49 · | 2016-11-13 13:17:07

Because their PM/CEO tells them to do and it's their job? Most developers have little say in this.

res0nat0r | karma 6030 | avg karma 2.53 · | 2014-11-09 00:55:15

They aren't snuffing out any developers, they just don't want people to download their content directly to their phones per their TOS.

I'm sure their rationale is reasonable and probably has to do with some overall terms probably with major content providers or studios.

reply

supercheetah | karma 202 | avg karma 1.84 · | 2024-05-06 17:53:30

That's a risk developers take by signing with a publisher.

matchbok | karma 1304 | avg karma 1.7 · | 2018-11-13 08:21:22

Because it's a distorted market. There has to be tradeoffs here otherwise developers would already be doing the things these laws are making them do.

ipaddr | karma 6901 | avg karma 1.37 · | 2021-07-15 12:35:46

Welcome to the world of business.

Usually the developer gets taken advantage of because they assumed the world to be fair and equal and companies to have your best interest.

In this case the developer got wind of an attempt to take advantage of him. He put in protection to prevent this. That's what a company would do.

To not understanding why someone needed do that strikes me as a bit naive.

reply