与监管不力的Android平台相比，iOS为开发商创造了更为规范稳定的运营环境一，这一点已是公认的事实。

从苹果生态圈的天然优势性来看，我们不难理解为何App Store开业以来，整个手机应用领域都在高度关注苹果平台的动静。

虽然苹果苟严的管制政策经常引起开发者的不快，但iOS确实有效避开了Android令人望而却步的平台分裂性问题，通过推出统一的服务，引进应用内置付费功能等新型创收渠道，苹果在帮助开发商获利这一点上遥遥领先于行业竞争对手。

但这种高度控制力度也意味着，苹果可以在不与其生态圈合作伙伴蹉商的前提下自主改变游戏规则。

而最近传来的苹果将全面限制App Store应用非自然下载现象的消息，也再度证实也这种说法——开发商永远无法预测苹果政策的转向。

app store

限制Flash技术

在2010年4月，苹果将iOS生态圈中采用Flash技术的游戏拒之门外的做法，虽然引起了一阵轩然大波，但却也并不十分令人意外，毕竟苹果与Adobe两者近年的不和已是众所皆知的事实。

苹果掌门人乔布斯之前已表态，因为Falsh在苹果设备上的运行性能问题，他们不愿意接纳Adobe的Flash技术。结果就是苹果变更了iOS的开发者协议，导致所有采用Flash技术开发的游戏被App Store禁售。

而Adobe的回应则是力挺Android这个iOS的竞争对手，其最近的动作就是在3月份面向Honeycomb操作系统推出了Flash Player 10.2技术。

从根本上来说，在苹果变更政策时，与iOS难容的公司也就只有选择Android平台这条唯一的出路。

政策变更原因

不管过去做法如何，禁用“下载奖励”广告模式却是苹果迄今变化最大的政策调整（游戏邦注：“下载奖励”广告模式鼓励用户点击下载指定的应用，然后获取自己所玩游戏的虚拟货币）。

这个动作发生在App Store出现调整应用排名算法的迹象之后，业内人士认为苹果的这一转变并非没有根据。

在这个竞争日益激烈的应用市场中，这种广告模式已成为不少免费应用的重要推广工具，而且还能通过刺激下载量，推高这些免费应用在App Store的排名。

苹果显然很介意这种“购买”应用排行榜名次的做法，因为它曲扭了应用排名的游戏规则，而其设立App Store排行榜的初衷是反映应用的人气，而非其营销成本。

首先发现苹果这一打算的开发商，正是那些采用了“下载奖励”广告模式的公司，他们的游戏更新版本最近就已在App Store碰壁。

与此同时，Tapjoy、Flurry等那些提供“下载奖励”广告服务的第三方公司，却并没有收到苹果的通知或联系。

开发商的其他选择

最关键的一点在于，苹果打造了一个人人都想从中分得一杯羹的强大平台。iOS生态圈中聚集了许多开发商、发行商、聚合者、游戏网络、营收工具、分析及广告服务以及许多移动业务运营解决方案。

但苹果变更政策的频率越高，iOS生态圈合作者们就越有可能迁移到其他平台。

谷歌Android是一个缺乏约束，前途尚不可测的平台，它与iOS形成鲜明对比的一个重要因素在于：谷歌无力控制Android平台。

即使谷歌有办法要求开发商遵从Android平台的政策条款，也难以控制用户总喜欢通过第三方市场获取产品的局面。

有趣的是，正是这种混乱无序的特点，才让Android应用开发商获得了运营模式的自主选择权，而无需担心被“封杀”的情况。

苹果的这项重大政策调整，究竟是否对iOS生态圈造成重大影响，现在还难以下定论。但需要注意的是，Android正在不断增势，而希望与苹果、谷歌分庭抗礼的诺基亚和微软也是一支不容忽视的力量。

当然，在许多运营于iOS平台的开发商对这项苹果新政感到不安的同时，Flurry和Tapjoy等已经活跃于Android平台第三方服务，也很可能重新考虑其未来投资方向。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，转载请注明来源：游戏邦）

Opinion: Apple’s move to block app incentivisation hands Android the initiative

The idea that iOS offers companies a more stable environment compared to the uncontrolled nature of Android is fast unravelling.

In its natural state, it’s not hard to understand why the industry has gravitated towards Apple’s platform since the launch of the App Store.

Though regulation has always been an issue, iOS has largely avoided the cases of fragmentation that have dogged Android, and by offering a unified service, Apple has been able to take the lead when it comes to enabling companies to make money as well as introducing new monetisation features such as in-app purchases.

But the level of control Apple has over all aspects of its ecosystem also means it’s able to change the rules for thousands of businesses in a moment’s notice, without any consultation.

Hence the news that Apple is blocking app incentivisation models – which enable games to gain exposure in the ever-expanding freemium market on iOS – is just the latest in a long line of unexpected shifts.

No Flash in the pan

Apple’s clamp down on games utilising Flash in their development back in April 2010 made significant waves, but wasn’t altogether surprising, given the two companies’ chequered history in recent years.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs had previously claimed his company’s reluctance to add support for Adobe’s platform across the board was due to concerns regarding Flash’s performance on Apple devices.

Damningly, Jobs described Flash as a hangover from a development age now long consigned to history. The end result was a change to the iOS developer agreement, which temporarily led to games developed using the language being blocked from sale.

In response, Adobe upped its efforts on Android – a run of support that has most recently resulted in Flash Player 10.2 rolling out on Honeycomb in March.

And, in essence, shifting focus to Android is often the only thing businesses bedded in iOS can do when Apple shifts the goalposts.

Cause for concern

Banning app incentivisation is Apple’s biggest shift in policy yet however.

Still, following on from a tweak to the chart algorithms the firm employs for iTunes, it would be unfair to suggest that there isn’t a valid reason behind the change in Apple’s position.

Incentivisation rewards players with virtual currency if they download and/or play other games advertised in-app. While it acts as an important promotional tool for freemium releases in an increasingly competitive market, it also has a direct bearing on a game’s position in the App Store rankings.

Apple is concerned that positions at the top of the charts can, essentially, now be bought. This makes a mockery of the rankings, which are intended to reflect popularity rather than marketing spend.

However, it appears the first anyone knew of Apple’s intentions to block the model were when updates to live games that use the model resulted in them being pulled from the App Store.

The networks for whom app incentivisation is a vital part of their business – Tapjoy, Flurry, et al – had not been contacted or warned.

Power and responsibility

The bottomline is Apple has built a platform everyone wants a piece of. Its family of products has created a complex ecosystem of developers and publishers, aggregators, game networks, monetisation tools, analytics and advertising specialists – almost any form of mobile business solution you can think of.

But the more frequently Apple changes the rules, the more likely they are to look around for alternatives.

The untethered nature of Android, though unpredictable and loose in some respects, boasts one crucial factor in comparison: Google’s inability to dominate the platform.

Even when rules are imposed on firms operating within the Android ecosystem, there’s are always other routes available to consumers via third party marketplaces.

Ironically then, the incoherent nature of Android actually allows businesses to run with a level of consistency not matched on iOS as they can define their own practices without fear they could be banned.

Whether the latest chapter in the story of Apple’s ever-tightening grip on iOS will result in a significant switch is hard to judge. To be honest, Android is already picking up so much momentum, it would be hard to notice additional acceleration.

It’s a chink of light for Nokia and Microsoft to seriously consider too as they attempt to play catch-up on Apple and Google.

Certainly, companies such as Flurry and Tapjoy, already active on Android are likely to be thinking about where their future investments will be spent, while everyone else operating on iOS is likely to feel a little more nervous than they were yesterday. （source:pocketgamer）