Pavel Durov accuses US tech giants of hurting app developers with their lengthy review processes and profit cuts
Russian-born software entrepreneur Pavel Durov, who runs the company behind popular messaging app Telegram, has criticized US tech giants for abusing their dominant market position.
The latest tirade, which Durov shared on this Telegram channel on Wednesday, was sparked by Apple apparently stopping the release of a new version of its messenger.
“Our next update, which is poised to revolutionize the way people express themselves in messages, has been stuck in Apple’s ‘review’ for two weeks, with no explanation or feedback provided by Apple,” he complained.
The patch is supposed to allow the app store operator to check submitted code for any potential malware and confirm that it meets security standards, before users can install it. Durov said the process was “discouraging” for your team, adding that “one can only imagine the difficulties experienced by smaller app developers.”
“This damage is on top of the 30% tax that Apple and Google charge app developers, which they say is supposed to pay for the resources needed to review apps.” added the businessman.
“Regulators in the EU and elsewhere are slowly beginning to investigate these abusive practices. But the economic damage that Apple has already inflicted on the tech industry will not be undone.”
Apple stands out among technology companies with strict rules for its platform. Unlike Google’s Android operating system, only Apple-approved software downloaded from the company’s store is allowed on Apple devices.
Durov previously claimed that the policy turns Apple customers into “digital slaves” of the company’s ecosystem, who have no choice but to buy their “expensive, obsolete” hardware, while subjecting your data to surveillance and censorship.