HuffPost The Apple Vision pro has just been released, but it’s already in danger
Le HuffPost
The Apple Vision pro has just been released, but it is already in danger
TECHNOLOGY – It costs $3,500, it is less ugly than a virtual reality headset, and it has been available since Friday February 2 in American stores: the Apple Vision Pro, the augmented reality glasses presented last June, is already in the hands of the most enthusiastic, some of whom have queued for hours. But there is a problem: the beautiful object full of promise is already missing almost the essential.
With its blend of virtual and augmented reality, the headset is meant to reinvent not only our online meetings, but also just about everything we do, or don’t yet do, on the Internet. Work, entertainment, discussions, discoveries… as is often the case with Apple products, there is no shortage of ambitions. But this time, it could well be the partners. And not least.
The tech giants have a hard time
This is how, in addition to Facebook (direct competitor with its VR headset), YouTube, Spotify and even Netflix have already made it known that they do not plan to launch an application for the famous technological jewel. Which is enough to chill fans of content of all kinds. Why this sulking? A story of big money, but not only that.
At the heart of the problem, the one that has been the focus of criticism for several years: the App store. The web giants accuse Tim Cook’s company of charging unacceptable margins on its online store, and of abusing its position. Technically, all services purchased via the app store must go through Apple’s payment solution, and for this, the firm systematically recovers a percentage. And the pain is not painless: 30% of payments are returned to Apple (15% for small developers).
This criticism is really nothing new. It is for this same reason that Netflix was not available on the Apple TV when it was launched and does not allow you to pay directly via the App store. This is also why Epic Games, the studio behind the very famous Fortnite, has been in an almost permanent lawsuit with Apple since 2021, and why the video game is no longer accessible via the App Store.
But if the Apple TV is a (relative) success and the rest of Apple products undergo the same boycott without it seeming to harm them, why would the Apple Vision suffer? Firstly because Youtube and the content it offers do not really have an equivalent on the internet, and Spotify and Netflix are offers for many that are inseparable from the online experience.
Then because starting the life of an accessory with the marked disdain of the biggest players in tech can be a recipe for planned failure. A bit like a games console that launched without a game would not put all the assets on its side… Ask the Apple Pippin, the console born dead which was one of the biggest industrial failures in the 90s for the brand with apple.
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