Apple App Store’s new guidelines will directly affect game streaming services

Apple App Store’s new guidelines, which was implement on Friday, have been under intense scrutiny over the past couple of weeks. App makers have argued that the iPhone maker has too much control over what software runs on iPhones and how Apple takes a cut of payments from the apps.

The latest revised guidelines will have major impact on game streaming services. Apple says game streaming services such as Google Stadia and Microsoft xCloud are explicitly permitted. However, there are conditions. Games need to be downloaded directly from the App Store and not from an all-in-one app. And app makers can release a catalog app that links to other games in the service. But each game will need to be an individual app. What this means is that if a streaming game service has 100 games, as per Apple’s new guidelines, each of those games will need an individual App Store listing and a developer relationship with Apple. Moreover, the individual games have to have some basic functionality when they are downloaded. And the games and stores need to offer in-app purchase using Apple’s payment processing system – from which the iPhone maker usually takes 30 per cent of the revenue.

An official Microsoft statement described Apple’s new guidelines as a ‘bad experience’ for customers. Gamers want to jump directly into a game from their curated catalog within one app just like they do with movies or songs, and not be forced to download over 100 apps to play individual games from the cloud. Apple has defended having a ‘tight control’ over the App Store for safety and security reasons. As such, developers and the iPhone maker are at discord. Gaming streaming services want to act as a platform for game makers, such as approving individual games and deciding which games to offer, but Apple wants the streaming services to act more like a bundle of games, and highlights the need to review every individual game.