YouTube and Spotify Won’t Launch Apple Vision Pro Apps, Joining Netflix

[u/Century24]

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-18/youtube-and-spotify-join-netflix-in-not-launching-apple-vision-pro-apps?utm_source=website&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=copy

[u/digidude23]

Makes me wonder what would have happened to the iPad if Apple provided the same opt out option for iPhone apps on iPad when it launched.

[u/digidude23 → u/[deleted]]

They used the telephony hardware restriction to block it. Fun fact the app already works on iPad but for TestFlight only. For App Store they still kept the telephony restriction but the code for the iPad UI is in there.

[u/troglonoid → u/digidude23]

Wow, do you have any more info/links?

[u/andlewis → u/troglonoid]

Sadly the beta is full. It’s limited to 5000 people.

[u/ytuns → u/troglonoid]

here

[u/Hutz_Lionel → u/[deleted]]

Jesus Christ, I’ve been waiting for the longest time for a WhatsApp iPad app.

[u/kraken_enrager → u/Hutz_Lionel]

Honestly if I could call w an iPad, I would have switched to an iPad ages ago.

[u/Sylvurphlame → u/[deleted]]

Before the switch to the Face ID aspect ratio, a cellular iPad Mini would’ve been impractically large, but not impossible. Seems kinda hilarious though.

[u/Existing365Chocolate → u/digidude23]

The iPad will have sold tons more than Apple Vision Pros will sell in the same timeframe though

[u/leftbitchburner → u/Existing365Chocolate]

I wonder if all these predictions that are made will look as silly as the ones made about the iPad many years ago.

[u/Existing365Chocolate → u/leftbitchburner]

Except the iPads weren’t 3.5k and had actual functionality associated with them despite the jokes

Even Apple’s marketing isn’t showing any kind of actual functionality. It’s people taking video, watching movies, and awkwardly filling out an excel document with their virtual keyboard

[u/CeolSilver → u/Existing365Chocolate]

There were a lot of people who dismissed any functionality of the iPad at launch, just seeing it as a “large iPhone”

[u/Creationship → u/CeolSilver]

Yeah I remember the iPad being a "big iPod touch that can't make calls" in the public perception.

[u/Easternshoremouth → u/Creationship]

I worked at Apple when the iPad launched. On my first trip after getting mine, I was waiting at the airport for one of my colleagues arrival. As a gag, I wrote his last name in large font in Pages and held up the iPad as if I were signalling that I was his hired driver. As people shuffled through the arrival gate to baggage claim, a couple of business men walked past me and one of them elbowed the other and said, "Hey, someone finally found a use for that thing." 😜

[u/axck → u/Easternshoremouth]

pathetic steer water dull edge pie screw sheet rich oatmeal

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

[u/Easternshoremouth → u/axck]

What can I say? I’m a visionary!

[u/MobiusOne_ISAF → u/Creationship]

Because they were. I don't know if you remember, but the initial iPad was mostly running iPhone apps, and it did look kind of ridiculous as a result even though the fundamental idea was solid. It took a few months and years until proper iPad apps showed up.

This kind of is the same situation, except VR/AR still has the same fundamental limitation of you have to wear goggles on your face to actually use the damn thing. The core ideas behind Vision Pro aren't drastically different from most other VR/AR headsets in the past decade, at least in my eyes. That does worry me a bit about the whole venture, but we'll see where it goes.

[u/gullydowny → u/Creationship]

It's still just a big ipod but before long it was $250 open boxed and everybody talked their mom into buying one.

[u/musicmast → u/gullydowny]

Can confirm. I asked my mom to buy me one

[u/[deleted] → u/Creationship]

Isn't that what the ipad is tho? Something to give to your kid because you don't want to parent no more.

[u/erishun → u/Creationship]

I can’t believe people forgot this. I remember when the MSI wind “netbook” was the rage and people were SHOCKED when the iPad wasn’t a 9.9” laptop.

All the memes of Steve Jobs holding up 4 iPhones taped together and saying this was the dumbest idea of all time. Then it was a hit and all those same people were like “ACKSHULY, the tablet existed long before the iPad, iPad is just a copy of the touchscreen windows computers”

[u/sakata32 → u/Creationship]

I still treat them like a big ipod touch. The thing is at a good price a big ipod touch is not a bad thing.

[u/singingthesongof → u/CeolSilver]

Difference being that it isn’t comfortable to wear a headset like this for long periods of times, so it doesn’t really matter how much Apple wishes people will want to wear this all day - they won’t.

We are getting closer to headset being comfortable to wear all day (e.g. Big Screen Beyond) but we aren’t there yet.

[u/[deleted] → u/CeolSilver]

I still think that, especially if you own a laptop

[u/axck → u/[deleted]]

ancient existence distinct bow aromatic reach square sort full zealous

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

[u/[deleted] → u/axck]

For sure. Tattoo artists seem to like them, for instance. Business setting is a great point too. iPads or similar devices as payment terminals are great

[u/vc6vWHzrHvb2PY2LyP6b → u/[deleted]]

It really is a big iPhone, but that's why I like it.

I got the Mini for $399- it's perfect for laying in bed and watching YouTube. It's an excellent e-reader and great for comics. It integrates well enough with my phone that I can do the same tasks.

When traveling, it's the perfect size to fit on the plane and watch movies or whatever.

When I'm feeling lazy, I'll sit in bed and pretend to work, then I can join Zoom calls and reply to Slack with it.

It's really about the form factor, and sometimes you just want a bigger iPhone.

[u/shamusfinnegan → u/[deleted]]

Vision Pro makes it hands free

[u/pmjm → u/[deleted]]

Too big for my leprechaun fetish.

[u/kraken_enrager → u/[deleted]]

iPads are super useful for execs who don’t really do much of bottom level work. It’s the ideal medium to read and annotate reports, PDFs, check emails and for videoconferencing etc.

I had my dad buy an iPad cuz he basically uses just his phone and hasn’t essentially used anything but his phone for his work since the blackberry days. It has a very small learning curve coming from an iPhone and can be a 90% replacement for it too. And the Apple Pencil is a delight on top of it.

That’s a pretty huge market, despite the consulting MD memes and stuff they are about the exact people it’s meant for.

[u/cjorgensen → u/[deleted]]

I use my iPad for work. Email, Teams, Slack. I also play games on it, text with friends, watch shows and movies, Reddit and surf the web. I bought the Magic Keyboard but never use it. Same with the Pencil (just not an artist, but artists love the iPad).

I have an M1 Air that I use to RDP into work PCs when I am WFH.

I’m probably on my iPad 8 or more hours a day with half those being work hours

As for the Vision Pro… I think consuming media on it would be awesome. A decade ago people were paying tons for a flat screen TV. This thing simulates a hundred foot TV screen. I can’t wait for version 2.0.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

I just love how overconfident Redditors are

[u/Juice805 → u/[deleted]]

If we are going off just anecdotes then so much of this is wrong.

iPads are far from useless, most of my gaming buddies have headsets, and there are many, many use cases for a good AR/VR headset.

[u/thebigFATbitch → u/[deleted]]

I use my iPad for work every single day.

It’s nice to take something with me on set and have the Apple Pencil readily available for the thousands of signatures I need from Executives throughout the day. They absolutely LOVE not having to open their emails and click on links to sign things. They love being able to see the calendar on my 12.9” screen and not on their phones all the time.

There are so many things I can do on the iPad that I cannot do on my laptop - and it is so portable and light.

I disagree entirely with your essay on why the iPad is useless, clearly.

[u/DanTheMan827 → u/digidude23]

Likely that it probably wouldn’t have taken off nearly as well until developers released native versions for iPad if they did at all.

Apple is probably playing it safe by not forcing it on developers, lest they get sued for being forced into making a version for a platform they didn’t want it available on.

Times have changed, and more eyes are on Apple than ever before

[u/y-c-c → u/digidude23]

It still seems crazy that Apple doesn't force iPhone/iPad apps to work on Apple Silicon Macs and Vision Pro. They run the same chips and you can get access to the same functionality. What is Netflix/YouTube/etc going to do? Pull their iOS apps?

[u/muffdivemcgruff → u/y-c-c]

These apps are not built using the native ui components that Apple supports, therefore there’s no easy way to make these apps look clean on Vision Pro.

[u/y-c-c → u/muffdivemcgruff]

The native UI makes it look nicer, but I seriously doubt it would be unusable. I guess both of us probably haven't used a Vision Pro in person but at least from what I have seen I would imagine it would still work. The UI for these apps aren't really that complicated other than "select video and watch".

[u/Rocky4OnDVD → u/digidude23]

Did Apple publish their calculator app for iPad yet?

[u/gngstrMNKY]

Spotify is no shock given their hostile relationship with Apple. They publicly complained about HomePods not having integration with third party music services, a feature that Apple added a few months later. It’s now been more than four years and Spotify still hasn’t implemented it.

[u/Quaxi_ → u/gngstrMNKY]

They added the feature in a way that would require Spotify to forgo their Connect feature in favour AirPlay 2. Apple did not want to implement Spotify Connect the way say Sonos, Google, or Amazon does.

Apple wants people in their ecosystem, and Spotify wants people in their.

[u/[deleted] → u/Quaxi_]

This. I always belive there is something in Apple's API may leak Spotify's user statiscs info so Spotify will never adopt it.

[u/inconspiciousdude → u/[deleted]]

Or maybe it's some stats that Spotify wants that Apple doesn't want to allow.

On another note, I tried playing some music on Spotify from Apple TV to HomePod the other day and it sounded terrible compared to Apple Music, even with a Spotify Premium account. Not quite sure why.

[u/timelessblur → u/inconspiciousdude]

Another one is Apple api does not feed back required info for Spotify agreements with the rights holder.

Like they would need to know which user playing what so they can charge the right amounts.

[u/CountSheep → u/Quaxi_]

A superior feature too. AirPlay is trash in comparison

[u/rootbeerdan → u/CountSheep]

I hate how right you are, AirPlay is good but the UI is so poorly designed that unless you actually understand what AirPlay is doing under the hood you aren't going to have a good time doing anything that isn't a single tap.

[u/SleepUseful3416 → u/CountSheep]

AirPlay sucks dick. The delay is unacceptable in 2024. It’s dumb as shit too. Spotify Connect on Alexa always works instantly and reliably.

[u/aeriose → u/gngstrMNKY]

Spotify also took weeks to update to the iPhone X screen size when that came out. They had black horizontal bars way passed any other app. Their development teams do not prioritize apple products at all.

[u/Shapes_in_Clouds → u/aeriose]

Spotify used to have a unique iPad app that was sick as hell too. Layered menus and tons of information density, felt like thumbing through a record bin. Now it's just a blown up version of the iPhone app.

[u/AndroidUser37 → u/aeriose]

It's funny you say that, because every time I use the iOS app it's smoother and nicer than the Android app.

[u/owleaf → u/AndroidUser37]

I just think they have shit app devs lol. Most of what makes Spotify “good” seems to be the backend, server stuff like search, connect, algorithms, etc.

[u/Right-Wrongdoer-8595 → u/AndroidUser37]

As an Android user their disregard for the Android application was what pushed me to YouTube Music.

[u/Forward_Recover_1135 → u/AndroidUser37]

Sounds like they just have a shitty development team overall then ¯_(ツ)_/¯ 

[u/Sylvurphlame → u/AndroidUser37]

Because it’s iOS. (Half joking, half referencing Android fragmentation, which is better, but still a thing.)

[u/bad-at-maths → u/AndroidUser37]

might be coincidence. most iOS apps are smoother

[u/timelessblur → u/aeriose]

I would say that but more a case of Spotify most likely was not using layout margins the Apple way (safe area) and did it themselves. Mix that with a lot of places do not jump to the next Xcode as soon as it drops. If a company upgrades by Christmas I say they are doing pretty good. This means no simulators with the X devices plus no test devices early on to spot it.

Their could easy be something in the code that the beta’s where making it hard to do plus beta would not of shown the X off for a while.

Then add in design time and seeing what solutions there are and how much tech debt are you talking about to make it work.

It all adds up. The X phones I remember them hitting and it being a huge pain in the ass to deal with. Hell they were a huge pain if you don’t use certain layout guides and even then they can be the special case yet again. Now days the SE and no X phones are the pain in the ass for the opposite reasons.

[u/I_trust_everyone → u/gngstrMNKY]

Well, Tim Cook, if you read this, Connect is the reason I use Spotify

[u/mca62511 → u/gngstrMNKY]

As a non-HomePod owner considering purchasing one: Can you not play Spotify on them?

[u/k-u-sh → u/mca62511]

You can, it’s just going to be AirPlay via Spotify on your phone; not directly on the HomePod via Siri.

[u/daveincanada → u/mca62511]

I have a HomePod mini and I would not buy another. Very inconsistent performance.

[u/The_Shadowghost → u/gngstrMNKY]

Absolutely. And since Apple started the Support for this, it got even worse.

The AppleTV APp hasn't been updated in over 2 1/2 years now. It still looks the same and doesn't have lyrics support. My guess is the moment something breaks due to server side changes they completely kill the app.

​

I think Apple and Spotify got in touch the moment 3rd party apps on the Homepod were announced. Spotify wanted an always active App that can be waked with Spotify connect. Apple said no that's not gonna happen, use Airplay 2 to wake up your app. Spotify got mad and stopped development for Airplay2 and AppleTV and then forfit the Homepod entirely.

[u/The_Shadowghost → u/gngstrMNKY]

Yup.

They also haven't updated their AppleTV App in 2 1/2 years now. It doesn't even have lyrics support. My guess is that they'll kill the App completely the moment something breaks.

Heck even Google Managed to integrate Youtube Music into the Homepod.

I think what Spotify wants is an App baked into the System that enables Spotify connect at all times and idealy on AppleTV and HomePod. Apple is probably not allowing that and instead of finding an agreement Spotify pouted, got mad again and stopped supporting the AppleTV and forfit the Homepod entirely.

[u/RealTechyGod → u/gngstrMNKY]

Yet developers can develop said integration themselves

[u/CivilProfessor]

It makes sense that the are not developing native visionOS as the platform is new and the numbers will be limited. However, disabling iPadOS app compatibility is ridiculous.

[u/peduxe → u/CivilProfessor]

it’s all fun until people start complaining that YouTube is trash on visionOS even when they don’t officially support it.

[u/TurnoverAdditional65 → u/peduxe]

Doesn’t mean it isn’t still trash, though.

[u/Sneyek → u/peduxe]

YouTube is actually trash. The only platform where it’s not is on computer browser because there’s adblockers.

[u/SaifNSound → u/Sneyek]

Fyi Firefox for iOS lets you use Adblock

[u/infam0us1 → u/[deleted]]

Orion browser on iOS allows Firefox and chrome extensions to be downloaded I don’t know how Apple allows this but it is amazing

[u/BIGSTANKDICKDADDY → u/Sneyek]

The native apps are actually great (iOS, iPadOS, and even tvOS).

I do pay for ad-free service, though.

[u/hzfan → u/[deleted]]

Nah it doesn’t. If Vision takes off Google will just make the visionOS app. They could do that way faster than Apple could develop and bring to market a viable competitor.

[u/DanTheMan827 → u/CivilProfessor]

It’s Apple playing it safe by not forcing developers to release on a platform they may not want to.

If developers were forced, they could make the argument that Apple is using its control over one market to unfairly increase its position in another market.

[u/ninth_reddit_account → u/DanTheMan827]

It's just unwise to force all apps. They might be outright broken, or the developers might not be comfortable with a sub-par experience.

As a developer, I want the say on what platforms I offer my software for.

[u/CountSheep → u/CivilProfessor]

Well Spotify is the same in web

[u/superbungalow → u/CivilProfessor]

Honestly? Good. I hope more people do this, Apple needs a reminder of how it needs developers as much as they need Apple. The hostility with which they treat iOS developers lately is ridiculous, why should developers help them build up another platform that Apple can eventually piss on them from again?

[u/Simply_Epic → u/CivilProfessor]

I’m surprised an iPad app for YouTube even exists. YouTube literally pays zero mind to the iPad app beyond making it functional.

[u/[deleted]]

[removed] — view removed comment

[u/trevorprater → u/[deleted]]

If you’re buying a Vision Pro, you’ve already subscribed to Apple Music and TV.

[u/kuang89 → u/trevorprater]

You meant to say Apple One

[u/AngelosOne]

Guess YouTube wants people to use browsers with ad blockers on the VisionPro then? Because that’s what they are asking for, lol. I might have tolerated ads in a native app, but if I’m using a browser, might as well use it with ad blockers.

[u/EasternFly2210 → u/AngelosOne]

There aren’t going to be many users so I guess they’re not bothered

[u/Phemto_B → u/AngelosOne]

That's how I access on my Mac, so I guess so.

[u/bluegreenie99 → u/Phemto_B]

That's what I do on my phone

[u/playfulcyanide → u/AngelosOne]

Most people aren't really using ad blockers. They'll just watch the ad on the browser UI and call it a day.

[u/[deleted] → u/AngelosOne]

I understand Spotify and Netflix but Youtube is a shocker given they have a native app for iOS and even Quest that has seen alot of work over the years. Not a jump for them.

[u/zeek215 → u/[deleted]]

Maybe they want to save it to debut on the headset they’re making with Samsung? It’s one of the few trump cards they have.

[u/YoungKeys → u/AngelosOne]

They don’t care because the user base will be virtually nonexistent compared to their scale products

[u/baconsplash → u/AngelosOne]

Good point. Can you get wipr or other iOS safari ad blockers on Vision Pro?

[u/santathe1]

If PlayStation remote play works via the PS app, damn, it’ll probably be great.

[u/duuudewhat → u/santathe1]

I’m hoping. The remote play app works on the quest 3 and it looks cool as hell

[u/No_Orchid2631 → u/santathe1]

Like being able to play ps5 in VR with vision pro??

[u/Weak-Jello7530]

Does anyone know why? Netflix does not have an app for mac either…

[u/Particular-Bike-9275 → u/Weak-Jello7530]

I mean you can use all these things without a dedicated app. Just use a web browser.

[u/Arucious → u/Particular-Bike-9275]

They frequently cap the bitrate to web browsers and only allow full 4K UHD / Dolby streams to their dedicated apps. Edge was for a time the only browser that could watch 4K Netflix on windows.

[u/sangreal06 → u/Arucious]

Edge was the only browser that could even watch 1080p Netflix. Still is on Windows

https://help.netflix.com/en/node/23742

[u/vFazzy → u/sangreal06]

Edge is the only one that can do 4K. I’ve managed to get 1080p on Brave and I believe Chrome also supports 1080p.

[u/anythingers → u/Arucious]

I thought 4K is also available on Safari on Mac after Big Sur update?

[u/jamac1234 → u/Arucious]

Can’t download offline either.

[u/oil1lio → u/[deleted]]

🏴‍☠️

[u/CivilProfessor → u/Particular-Bike-9275]

Cannot save files for offline watching with the browser.

[u/Simbatheia → u/CivilProfessor]

It’s also limited to fucking 720p, even if you pay $20 a month for 4k. Probably because they want you to use their own app so they can better track you

[u/Intl_House_Of_Bussy → u/Particular-Bike-9275]

Web browsers are far shittier

[u/TheDragonSlayingCat → u/Weak-Jello7530]

The same reason why so many iOS apps are not available on macOS even when they will run perfectly fine on macOS: “Eww, Macs, no.”

[u/the__storm → u/Weak-Jello7530]

Not enough users (for now anyways) to justify the expense of development to target Vision Pro specifically, and they'd rather play it safe than be known for a half-baked floating iPad experience.

I think to some degree these companies have negative memories of shipping apps for Quest and for now are avoiding a repeat by just waiting to see how adoption pans out.

[u/[deleted] → u/Weak-Jello7530]

They made a native app for Quest OG but stopped supporting it after it launced and it's a pile of shit that only streams 480p.

[u/wallstreet-butts → u/Weak-Jello7530]

Why would Netflix, who are in cost-cutting mode, put any effort into supporting an unproven platform, with a max consumption time of 2.5 hours on battery, that has no users and tepid demand, and whose eventual users are all probably Netflix customers anyway (but again, not in enough quantity to really care if they all disappeared)? Apple haven’t proven that anyone prefers watching 2D Netflix content with this thing strapped to their face over watching it on their living room TV. There is zero business case for Netflix until Apple proves it can scale this platform, and once it does achieve scale, the play runs through an original content investment in spatial video. Nor does it make sense, for that matter, for Netflix to spend on a content investment to help promote the platform of a key competitor. From a strategic perspective they are absolutely correct to sit this out.

[u/lost_in_life_34 → u/Weak-Jello7530]

why would they spend money on a few of these things with no idea how successful it's going to be

[u/monti9530]

Can't we just open a web browser with these apps?? I have never downloaded any of these apps on my Mac.

[u/napolitain_ → u/monti9530]

That’s the point. You skip App Store this way.

[u/monti9530 → u/napolitain_]

Well then if that's the case, I don't understand why people are complaining.

I can see people wanting to get the Netflix app to download a movie for an airplane trip. But everything else should be fine with just Safari and wifi.

[u/disregardsmulti21 → u/monti9530]

Indeed I prefer the YouTube website to their iOS app (mostly because I’m not paid and the app is far more creative in finding ways to thrust ads into my tired eyes)

[u/axck → u/monti9530]

noxious wakeful special nine axiomatic divide soft bewildered frighten familiar

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

[u/Cayenne999 → u/monti9530]

That's what was written in the article. You still can use their website.

[u/Theaty]

Why would they spend thousands of dollars developing an app that will cater to maybe 50-100k people out of which maybe 100 people are going to make a purchase decision solely on if they have a VR app or not

[u/handinhand12 → u/Theaty]

A lot of times they'll do it to have it in place for the future when it's more popular. They'll also do it for platforms they think will have a larger user base in the future in order to help drive growth on that platform. For instance, if they thought that having a YouTube app would help drive more YouTube Premium subscriptions and engagement to YouTube (since people would be able to see 3D/360 content as well as 2D content on giant screens), they might choose to support the platform in order to help it catch on and grow.

[u/jimbo831 → u/Theaty]

It would likely cost millions, not thousands of dollars.

[u/y-c-c → u/Theaty]

That's not the point of contention here. Apple, for some reason, allows devs to opt out of making their iPad apps runnable on the Vision Pro, similar to how you can opt out of Apple Silicon Macs. These developers manually did work to opt out of it. They could have just let the iPad apps run on the Vision Pro with no work.

[u/[deleted] → u/y-c-c]

I think it would’ve needed work though.

[u/chodeboi → u/[deleted]]

Yeah I thought the intro videos on dev.apple showed how to make a few small adjustments to existing apps to make them compatible, not the other way around…

[u/wally-sage → u/y-c-c]

You DO have to work, though. There are a lot of iOS features not supported by Vision Pro. Forcing devs to support a platform they don't want to support is not a good way to entice them to develop apps on your platform.

[u/BourbonicFisky → u/y-c-c]

So.... have you tried running an iOS or iPadOS app on an Apple silicon Mac? It kinda sucks ass. Try explaining as developer to the average consumer that the app isn't native and delivers bad experience.

Despite the high price tag, there'll be the people who have more money than sense buying the Vision Pro and last thing you'd want is a TikTok video floating around how bad YouTube is on the Vision Pro.

[u/SoldantTheCynic → u/[deleted]]

That’s always been the case though. Some people here act like developers are parasites of Apple, but they forget one of the platform’s greatest strengths is the robust app ecosystem.

[u/dariy1999 → u/[deleted]]

lol “those bad app developers dont want to develop an app for a headset barely anyone will buy in a hostile environment for a company that is notorious for not giving a shit about others and rejecting anything not from their ecosystem” truly ruining a product

[u/AtomicSymphonic_2nd → u/[deleted]]

And I guess a wearable PC monitor, too.

This is... discouraging to see, at least for me.

[u/[deleted] → u/AtomicSymphonic_2nd]

They’re not actively trying to ruin it. They’re just not throwing money for a headset that has a $3,500 entry fee.

[u/L0nz → u/AtomicSymphonic_2nd]

It's not a complete replacement. It's a heavy device, so I don't see people sitting with this on their head the entire day

[u/eggsaladsandwichism → u/[deleted]]

That’s always what it was going to be. I can’t see this thing not flopping

[u/BurnAfter8 → u/[deleted]]

No one is ruining anything. It’s interesting that all of these regular consumers believe their opinions on Vision Pro hold any weight. Apple isn’t making this for everyone. Sure, anyone can buy it, but the target audience is professionals and professional app developers, none of which care about watching Netflix. Consumers won’t be the target audience until the 2nd or 3rd generation.

[u/Antrikshy → u/BurnAfter8]

Have you seen their presentation? They definitely showed it off as a consumer device.

[u/ElBrazil → u/BurnAfter8]

Sure, anyone can buy it, but the target audience is professionals and professional app developers, none of which care about watching Netflix.

Every piece of marketing material has made it clear that the Vision Pro is a consumer device

[u/Antrikshy → u/ElBrazil]

And the fact that they’re letting people demo and purchase them in their stores.

[u/slawnz → u/ElBrazil]

There are a lot of bad takes with an alarming number of upvotes in this thread.

[u/DrSheldonLCooperPhD → u/BurnAfter8]

"App developers are in unique position, they have choice to not support conaumer Vision Pro 2nd or 3rd gen with their apps and refuse to participate in Apple bully tactics"

Microsoft took 20 years to build back trust with developers after being so hostile early. It will happen to Apple, there will come a time where Apple needs developers more then they need Apple.

[u/[deleted]]

Youtube is a big deal, since they have so much 3D content.

[u/triffy → u/[deleted]]

True, but having used it on a Quest 2, most of the content is 24p at a too low resolution. It’s not fun.

[u/newInnings]

Vision pro: The windows Phone dilemma

[u/Bulky-Dark → u/newInnings]

Bro it should not be that story. Windows phone was the most fluid OS at the time. It's a shame it lost

[u/[deleted]]

ugly dinosaurs deserted unwritten deer roof smile placid relieved existence

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

[u/UnsafestSpace → u/[deleted]]

The problem is they're actively blocking the iPad versions of these apps from working on the new Vision Pro devices, the Vision Pro will launch with the full current iPad app store, just like you can install mobile apps on the M1/M2/M3 Macbooks.

[u/Furqan23 → u/UnsafestSpace]

I would imagine it’s not for malicious intent and more that they can’t guarantee the experience on it matches what they wish to deliver

And they don’t yet want to dedicate the time and resources to deliver the experience they wish for

[u/[deleted] → u/UnsafestSpace]

adjoining political hobbies sharp gray fragile fanatical onerous elastic expansion

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

[u/Ollie142 → u/[deleted]]

Could also be due to holiday season.

[u/cjcs → u/Ollie142]

Yup. Code freeze

[u/picastchio → u/[deleted]]

Spotify app is written using web technologies. You can directly deliver JS bundle updates to the user devices. It’s not restricted if you are not changing any native code. I don’t know what framework Spotify uses but you can see how it’s done for indie ReactNative apps using Expo SDK.

[u/ryan35310 → u/[deleted]]

A lot of app updates happen silently that don’t require an app store update. It’s one of the newer models to push app updates via server-side changes rather than client-side.

[u/Lasershot-117]

It’s very simple:

• Will developing a native app for the Vision Pro lead to increased subscription revenue or app purchases?

No.

Business case closed.

Smaller developers that make amazing specialized apps specifically for that platform (ex: ProCreate or GoodNotes on iPad) are the ones that will have the better business case, but these developers being small, the cost of capital and risk is also much higher for them.

Making an app for such an expensive, niche and small usership product is a tricky decision.

[u/kinglucent]

With these two joining Netflix in the Will Not Support Vision column, Apple needs to start highlighting the apps that will support Vision.

Right now, all we're seeing is a stream of high profile rejections. When the Watch came out, everything had an app, but they were gradually sunset. Apple is not making a very good case for this product, and that's coming from someone eagerly awaiting pre-orders.

[u/[deleted] → u/kinglucent]

YouTube and Netflix are #1 and #2 in terms of video content market share. Most content are consumed on these two platforms. Apple doesn’t need to highlight what apps are joining, they need to win Netflix/Youtube back.

[u/kalakesri]

Being developer hostile for years will make developers not want to adopt your new platform.. what a shocker

[u/DanTheMan827]

Developers don’t want the Vision Pro to be another product that every user expects to have an app for everything.

They want to pull users away from the App Store and normalize the use of the open web again, and I don’t really blame them.

It’s ridiculous that an app is expected for everything… Especially things that are perfectly suited to be a PWA like social media

[u/hayden0103 → u/DanTheMan827]

This is purely a strategy decision, not some kind of resources thing. All of these companies have spent big money developing app frameworks that make porting to different screen sizes and capabilities as simple as possible. They don’t want to make an app for it because they think it’s bad for their business for some reason.

[u/DanTheMan827 → u/hayden0103]

The App Store is bad for their business in a way… if they normalize use of it as a web app, they control all of the billing and keep all of the money paid.

They don’t want another platform where they’re required to pay Apple 15-30% on.

I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if eventually they maybe even pull off the App Store entirely for the iPhone and push everyone to using their website as a PWA instead… although with the limits Apple imposes on PWAs, it would mean it’s impossible to offer offline playback… but just about everything else is possible

[u/redfriskies → u/DanTheMan827]

Apple has been squeezing out app developers for years. It's pure abuse. I am happy they're finally pushing back.

[u/Spore-Gasm → u/DanTheMan827]

I doubt that since Apple has made BILLIONS off the App Store. I don't think they're trying to kill their cash cow. If anything, they're hoping this is the new iPhone since we've been at peak iPhone for a few years now and that's going to heavily rely on the App Store. Even at $3500, Apple could be losing money on these hoping to recoup through App Store revenue. Similar to how game consoles are sold at a loss but make it up in game sales.

[u/DanTheMan827 → u/Spore-Gasm]

I wasn’t talking about Apple, I was talking about developers. I guess I should’ve been more clear, but I thought “They” was pretty clear I was talking about Google, Netflix and Spotify.

[u/Spore-Gasm → u/DanTheMan827]

Derp, I totally misread. Yeah, developers are anti-App Store for sure. Apple should be worried.

[u/Saar13]

The leading music service, the leading paid streaming service, and the leading free streaming service. Complicated. Apple was supposed to have more popular music and TV services at this time, but Music fails in recommendations and playlists, alienating users who prefer Spotify. I love AppleTV+, but it won't work while they have so little content. The idea of ​​a quality originals service is great on paper, but it hasn't worked. People continue to prefer services with a lot of content. They should have already bought a studio or at least a library of quality content. And that's easy nowadays. Lionsgate is worth the equivalent of a cup of coffee to Apple, for example. Paramount would sell a lot of content in the current situation they are in. Many people here don't like investments in services, but they are undeniably the future for Apple, along with advertising and AI, especially at a time when devices don't sell like they used to and cash from the App Store could be compromised. Maybe they need to destroy this walled garden.

[u/zNz__2321 → u/Saar13]

The leading players will always be the last - they're the only ones who can afford to hold out and see.

Apple starting with Disney Plus, Max, .... is already enabling over 50% of the market to stream on their platform

[u/Century24]

Spotify and YouTube are now joining Netflix as major apps that will not launch with Apple Vision Pro. The device will be released on February 2nd. Per Bloomberg:

Google’s YouTube and Spotify Technology SA, the world’s most popular video and music services, are joining Netflix Inc. in steering clear of Apple Inc.’s upcoming mixed-reality headset.

YouTube said in a statement Thursday that it isn’t planning to launch a new app for the Apple Vision Pro, nor will it allow its longstanding iPad application to work on the device. YouTube, like Netflix, is recommending that customers use a web browser if they want to see its content: “YouTube users will be able to use YouTube in Safari on the Vision Pro at launch.”

Spotify also isn’t planning a new app for visionOS — the Vision Pro’s operating system — and doesn’t expect to enable its iPad app to run on the device, according to a person familiar with matter. But the music service will still likely work from a web browser. Bloomberg News reported on Netflix’s decision Wednesday.

[u/coasterghost]

YouTube VR is like their HDR support; hot garbage.

[u/thiskillstheredditor → u/coasterghost]

Hot take: Google software in general can be classified that way.

[u/Rhed0x → u/coasterghost]

Youtube HDR works just fine?

[u/kayjayapps]

Was anyone really hoping to listen to Spotify with a big chunky headset though

[u/gullydowny]

Does anybody think they're going to sell many of these? Diverting resources to make an app that .0001% of your users will use doesn't make much sense so it might be up to Apple to come up with a use-case.

I'll bet they're working on specially filmed movies and shows that only work on it but IDK what else is going to help sell the thing

[u/ludvikskp]

They don’t believe it will be a huge success, and it’s way too expensive to be adopted by huge number of people. If it is a success they will make apps eventually

[u/ericl666]

Live by the walled garden, die by the walled garden.

[u/Blimey85v2]

Spotify seems an odd thing for these anyway. I guess if you’re watching music videos. A nice visualizer could be cool. Are those even still a thing? I think the last time I had one was back on WinAMP.

[u/AppointmentNeat]

Can’t wait for the “I don’t like those services anyway” comments.

[u/aheze]

YouTube iPad version is already pretty trash so makes sense they don’t support vision pro yet

[u/101_210 → u/aheze]

How so? I use it daily, and it’s very similar to all mobile yet versions.

[u/SourBuffalo → u/101_210]

Same. No issues here.

[u/Iblis_Ginjo → u/aheze]

The YouTube iPad app is literally my favorite

[u/asBad_asItGets → u/Iblis_Ginjo]

Yeah tbh I dont know why everyones complaining about the ipad app for youtube. Ive used it for years now and its been totally fine for me.

[u/rennarda]

Better off using Vinegar via the web for YouTube as it strips out all the ads. I don’t use the YouTube app on my iPad anyway.

[u/AtomicSymphonic_2nd]

Uh oh... YouTube not being native to VisionOS is going to be a bigger problem than not having Netflix.

Without native support from the largest third-party services, these goggles aren't going to make a much bigger splash than the Valve Index or PSVR did.

Edit: If Hulu doesn't support this either, I would have zero use case for a Vision Pro: using it to watch private movies and TV shows on a flight. 🙃

[u/scoobynoodles]

How different is this from using the browser vs the app? Couldn't you do everything in the browser as the app?

[u/engineeeeer7]

Why would anyone make an app for a $3500 device? The market is just too small.

[u/Excuse_my_GRAMMER]

Damn

They all in cahoots against Apple

[u/Fixer625]

Why devote the manpower to developing an app on a $3500 visor, when you can do exactly the same thing in a browser window?

[u/ivanhoek → u/Fixer625]

Is it exactly the same thing?

[u/GoStateBeatEveryone → u/Fixer625]

I mean, I’d assume ad revenue. If I’m just using YouTube on my browser, I’ll enable an ad blocker

[u/Lancaster61]

No issue. I don’t use the YouTube app anyways because AdBlockers don’t work. With Safari, I don’t see any YouTube ads using content blockers.

Though it’s odd that Google chose this for YouTube, it’ll just teach more people to use adblockers on YouTube and to not use the app even if it becomes available in the future.

[u/Whatwhyreally]

Why would platforms with users in the hundreds of millions develop software for a product that likely won’t sell more than 10k?

[u/Calogyne]

Just let it run Mac apps then boom there be apps