Skip to main content

Apple Facing Antitrust Inquiry

Apple’s decision to ban Flash from its development license may have unforeseen consequences, in the form of a federal antitrust inquiry.

It is no secret that Apple doesn’t like Adobe. Last week, Steve Jobs issued an open letter that states in no uncertain terms why he considers Flash to be undesirable on the Apple mobile devices, listing six major reasons why Flash is flawed. The list includes security, reliability, and even battery drain as a result of Flash. In short, Jobs does not like Flash at all, and he seemed almost surprised when the backlash grew. He even went so far as to make it slightly personal, “Perhaps Adobe should focus more on creating great HTML5 tools for the future, and less on criticizing Apple for leaving the past behind,” Jobs said.

When Apple tweaked its license to bar all Flash-based apps from the iDevices, they did so by requiring developers to use Apple development tools exclusively. This forces developers away from third-party software that Apple does not want, but it also makes multi-platform development nearly impossible. Apple claims that this move is simply because it is what is best for the technology, but many in Washington D.C. are disagreeing with him.

According to the NY Post both the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission are interested in launching an inquiry into Apple’s new policy. Both agencies are currently negotiating to see who will take the lead, and a decision should be made within the next few days. If the inquiry yields enough questions, a formal investigation will follow and Apple will be officially subpoenaed for details on the license.

If the investigation finds that Apple’s new license unfairly forces developers away from other sources of competition, they could be found in violation of antitrust regulations

There are more than just legal concerns over the possible antitrust violations, there are practical ones as well. Many developers prefer to use other tools because they plan to market the various apps on multiple platforms. If developers use only Apple tools, it may become cost prohibitive to the smaller developers to have to rework he same app under a different OS.

Since Apple is second in the smartphone market behind RIM, and with Google’s Android gaining more ground everyday, it might force some developers away from Apple, if they are forced to choose.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Ryan Fleming
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Ryan Fleming is the Gaming and Cinema Editor for Digital Trends. He joined the DT staff in 2009 after spending time covering…
Will the Vision Pro replace the Mac? Why Apple will have to tread carefully
A developer points to a Mac screen while a Vision Pro rests on the desk.

The Vision Pro headset is poised to be one of the most significant products Apple has introduced in years, and it has the potential to launch a new era of success for the company. But at the same time, there’s a risk that it could end up cannibalizing the Mac line by giving plenty of people something that could replace their computer altogether.

That means Apple has got to be very careful with how it handles the Vision Pro. It no doubt wants as many people to buy it as possible, but it wants that to happen without having to sacrifice sales of its other devices. How on earth is it going to do that?
The Mac killer?

Read more
Here’s how the M3 Max chip compares to the most powerful Windows laptops
The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M3 Max chip seen from behind.

Apple's M3 Max is an incredibly powerful chip, significantly increasing Apple Silicon's CPU and GPU performance. It's gotten a ton of press, but is it necessarily faster than the fastest Windows laptops?

To find out, we pitted it against the Lenovo Legion 9i, a gaming laptop equipped with the ultrafast Intel Core i9-13980HX and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090, and the Asus ROG Strix Scar 17 with the AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX and the RTX 4090. We can't compare the MacBook Pro 14 with the M3 Max directly to the Lenovo and Asus in that many benchmarks, particularly gaming, due to limits in testing and cross-platform compatibility. But we could compare enough to get an idea of how these various chips stack up against each other.
A brief look at architectures
The Apple M3 Max is an ARM-based system on a chip (SoC) currently at the high end of Apple Silicon's lineup. It represents the first chips made using a 3nm process and redesigned GPU architecture. On the CPU side, Apple increased the speed of its performance cores by 15% and its efficiency cores by 30% over the M2. Overall, Apple is promising a 20% to 25% improvement in performance. On the GPU side, Dynamic Caching is one technology that speeds up a variety of GPU processes, while gamers will benefit from mesh shading and hardware-accelerated ray tracing.

Read more
How to keep your laptop battery healthy and extend its life
Screenshot showing battery life in Windows.

Taking proper care of your laptop's battery is important for ensuring your mobile machine can run as long as possible. Although battery technology has evolved in the background, outdating "best practices" from a few years ago, there are still a number of ways you can extend (or reduce) your laptop battery's health. We've rounded up the top tips for how to care for your laptop's battery, from how long you should leave it plugged in to how low you should let the battery drain.

Read more