“Hearthstone on Phones is Costing Blizzard Millions of Dollars. Mobile stores like the Apple App Store and Google Play Store take a 30% cut of all in-app purchases.”
Since then, more and more developers like Spotify, Microsoft, Epic Games and tons of others, have spoken out about the monopolistic practices of Apple which doesn’t allow gaming companies to set up their own store like on PC.
Blizzard needs to speak out about this too.
At the end of the day, this is about the money gamers spend on Hearthstone. And I assume gamers want that money to go to the development of the game they support, and not 30% being taken by Apple and Google.
I mean, if they haven’t addressed the issue in the last five years, maybe it isn’t that big of an issue? Alternatively, maybe it used to be an issue, but it is no longer an issue? Five years is a long time in tech.
You don’t think Blizzard losing millions of dollars (see Gamasutra details) is an issue?
At the end of the day, this is money gamers give to the gaming company in the hopes they improve and support the game they enjoy playing. This is money that should go to game developers, not to Apple and Google.
I really don’t like to defend Google, but they did it right IMO: their app store is nothing more than an advertisement platform. The cut they ask is quite extreme yeah, but if Blizzard ever decides it’s not worth the cost they can remove HS from the Google Play Store and people can still download and play HS on Android phones. This also puts Blizzard in a position where they can negotiate: “accept a lower cut or you won’t get a cut at all”.
But Apple… they block getting apps from third party sources and that changes everything. It puts Apple in a monopoly situation and that makes what’s acceptable and what’s not WAY more strict.
Alternatively, the mobile market is a large audience that Blizzard isn’t taking for granted. I only play this game on my phone. Yes I have a PC, but it’s more convenient just to sit on the couch lounging and get a game in or two, or if I’m out waiting for a ride or on campus.
Blizzard isn’t losing money, they’re simply paying their cut to get a wide range of people who want to play their game to be able to do so.
Apple having a monopoly on the PC market isn’t really an issue. People who buy Apple computers are likely not doing so to play games, but to use fancy creative programs like Garage Band or iMovie that are restricted to the compatibility within the overpriced hardware and operating systems that are Mac computers.
If Hearthstone really wanted to, they could just create an APK file you could download directly from their site and not worry about the Playstore. However, the Playstore exists to put the name out, makes device compatibility sorting easier for the consumer, and let’s people channel funds from IAPs in the easiest way possible for said market. It is what it is, and this company isn’t short on money.
Other games like Starcraft II, Diablo III, Overwatch, and whatever else use different platforms which charge royalties to the companies that host and advertise them. You think Nintendo is asking for 0 dollars from digital downloads or Xbox Live not taking a cut from Overwatch IAPs? They serve different markets, but they end up bringing a bigger audience than if they just focused on the single PC Platform.
But it’s not that simple in reality, otherwise Google Play store would have lots of competition. Game developers would love nothing more than not having to pay the 30% Google tax.
-Android sets off a lot of security warnings when you download an APK, they actively try to dissuade people from downloading it
-When smartphone companies try to put an alternative app store on their phone, Google is extremely vindictive, Google blocked both LG and OnePlus from installing their own app store
-Google blocks their payment system and API that app store developers would need access to to have a working store, Google makes it a nightmare to set up your own store
30% is a known joke that’s being played, even judges scratch their heads and question how one justifies it during lawsuits. Dont think for a moment it makes them cry, it allows them flex ability when setting prices on themes, packs etc. It does however stifle small business, steam is no different.
Wow, looks like just last month Fortnite got kicked off the Google Play store for giving the game an update that allowed players to pay directly to Epic. Dang.
For anyone on mobile wishing to circumvent the Play store, you can always just buy your packs/bundles/adventures on Battle.net in the mobile browser, then go log into the app and it’ll be there waiting for you.
The last point you made there is probably the strongest hold Google has against any company. It makes sense to dissuade people to make their own store if they are able to block the funnel for cash between the player and the app developer.
There are instances where small indie companies side step the Google Play route and use direct purchases through their websites to make IAPs happen. Instead of relying the app to make the purchase, you just make a purchase like you were buying a product off a site, and then they transfer the items to your in game account.
I’m not saying there’s a real good answer to Google’s hold, but technically Google is the owner of the market and as such will control every corner they can fill. Even if Blizzard is short of making millions of potential dollars, they still reap all the benefits that Google does and that is essentially the hosting and advertising. Business is business, and Blizzard is not innocent in doing everything they can to squeeze every last of ounce of dollar from the consumer. Is it wrong for Google to monopolize half the mobile phone app market? Maybe. Quite frankly, there’s more problems in life in regards to market holds and monopoly than a digital card game. I would first target the Pharmaceutical companies and company lobbyists who push out agendas to sell products at inflated prices. It’s one thing to control a market, it’s another when you can price gouge with arbitrary numbers.
And the iOS store, too, because they deliberately started a fight with both Google and Apple by violating the ToS on purpose, with a tailor-made ad campaign ready to go immediately when they got booted.
Zero sympathy for Epic. They’re abusing the power that the huge wad of Fortnite cash in their pocket gave them.
To the OP: Never. They have more customers because of mobile and tablet users, and though some multiplatform users might pay for their packs on a phone instead of on PC, they make more than they lose because those mobile-only players would otherwise not be players.
But, it is also why I specifically don’t buy anything for Hearthstone on my phone.
Support Hearthstone by playing on your PC or buying stuff from your PC. Apple has been a money grubbing company for a loooooooooooong time (anyone who knows how iTunes works knows this).
Apple would love nothing more than to have complete control over your phone and your purchases. This is one of the strongest reasons I never buy apple and always go android.
That being said, if this was really hurting the pockets of Blizzard, they would take action. All businesses look at cutting expenses every year, it’s part of what you do when you own a business. It’s why we lost community managers/moderators. Payroll is almost always the first thing to go.
If Hearthstone could cut this % out they would. It’s very likely that this is why they are so aggressive with bundles and new content - so they can profit more instead of trying to cut profit margins elsewhere.
Don’t feel sorry for Hearthstone and apps in general. Mobile apps are a multi-billion dollar industry and they aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.
I thought that was very apparent by the way they handled the Hong Kong incident. It was crystal clear that profits > customer base satisfaction…which is something I unfortunately know first hand with the company I work with.