Facebook’s fight with Apple is approaching the dispute over Apple’s new privacy feature, which would limit the coverage of targeted ads, highlighting the contrasting but symbiotic nature of the two technology giants’ business models.
Apple plans to launch a feature early next year, asking apps sold in its store to ask users for permission to track their data, extending the enhanced privacy features already launched. The update was supported by technology advocacy groups such as Digital Rights Ranking, which cite it as a vital step towards data protection and transparency.
But Facebook, which thrives on selling targeted ads, criticizes the update with an ad campaign that marks Apple’s move as profit-oriented, not privacy-focused.
“It will force companies to use subscriptions and other payments in the revenue app, which means Apple will benefit and many free services will have to start charging or exit the market,” said Dan Levy, Facebook’s vice president of advertising. and business products. blog post on Wednesday.
Apple has denied Facebook’s claims, doubling that the move is aimed at improving privacy, while also throwing away Facebook’s collection of user data.
“We believe that this is a simple matter of being in favor of our users. Users should know when their data is being collected and shared between other apps and websites – and should be able to allow it or not, ”Apple said in a statement. “Transparency of app tracking in iOS 14 does not require Facebook to change its approach to tracking users and creating targeted advertising, but simply gives users a choice.”
Facebook has stepped up its fight against Apple this week, moving on Wednesday with a new website and newspaper ads claiming that Apple’s update will affect small businesses. Separate announcements released on Thursday say the move will also affect consumers, prompting companies to start charging fees for previous free services to offset lost advertising revenue.
“Obviously, Facebook is doing this in its best interest,” Elizabeth Renieris, a senior policy analyst at Digital Rights Ranking, told The Hill, noting that the platform’s client is not an individual, but rather an advertiser.
“I use the hashtag ‘Stand up for Small’ or something like that, but you don’t see Small Business Administration or NFIB [National Federation of Independent Business] or the Chamber of Commerce pushing back against these changes. This feels characterless, “she added.
The Small Business Administration, NFIB and the US Chamber of Commerce did not respond to comments.
Levy acknowledged that the update will affect Facebook’s diversified advertising business, but he wrote in the blog post that the effect on Facebook will be “much smaller than what will happen to small businesses.”
In a call with reporters, Levy also accused Apple of behaving anti-competitively with the upgrade, in an effort to benefit from the Apple app store.
The accusation comes since both Facebook and Apple, along with Google and Amazon, have faced increased control over market power.
Earlier this month, 48 attorneys general filed a lawsuit accusing Facebook of anticompetitive purchases. Facebook defended itself, noting that the acquisitions in question, by WhatsApp and Instagram, were approved by the regulators at that time.
Although Facebook and Apple are two of the largest technology companies, they have contrasting business models that are at the heart of their mushroom feud.
Facebook is built by offering free online services to users, making money in return through ads placed on its platforms. Apple relies on consumer taxation and relies less on advertising revenue.
Despite their conflicting patterns, both companies rely on each other to reach consumers.
“The problem there is for Facebook, no [has] a kind of strange symbiotic relationship [with Apple]”Ryan O’Leary, a senior research analyst at International Data Corporation (IDC), told The Hill.”
Facebook needs Apple’s iOS platforms to reach users, he said. Similarly, Apple risks losing users if it does not have Facebook-owned applications available to customers.
The update, announced as part of a new set of privacy features introduced in June, will be released as part of the iOS14 update in September. But Apple later delayed the update, saying it would give developers time to update their data systems and practices.
The fight for the anti-tracking feature adds to a years-long dispute between top technology companies.
In 2018, Apple CEO Tim Cook criticized Facebook for its data privacy practices, amid reports that Cambridge Analytica collected data from 50 million Facebook users without their permission.
Asked at the time what he would do if he were the CEO of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Elliot ZuckerbergHillicon Valley: MPs call for action after ‘devastating’ cyber attack on federal government | US cyber agency issues emergency directive following piracy | FTC opens privacy study on major internet platforms Facebook faces the most serious threat of breach of lawsuits in 46 states and FTC files antitrust lawsuits against Facebook MORECook replied, “I wouldn’t be in this situation.”
“We could make a lot of money if we generated money from our customers. If our customers were our product, ”Cook said in the same interview with Recode and MSNBC.
“We care about the user experience. And we will not traffic in your personal life. I think it is an invasion of privacy, “he added.
Zuckerberg rejected in an interview shortly after Cook’s, defending the Facebook model as the creation of a more accessible internet service.
“You know, I find that the argument that if you don’t pay for it in a way, we can’t care about you, is extremely clear. And not at all aligned with the truth, “Zuckerberg told Vox.
“The reality here is that if you want to build a service that helps connect all the people in the world, then there are a lot of people who can’t afford to pay. Therefore, as in the case of many media, having a sustained model of advertising is the only rational model that can support the construction of this service to reach people, “he added.
The fight went beyond the best trading managers.
Apple rejected at least five versions of a Facebook Gaming app between February and June, The New York Times reported. Apple has mentioned the rule that prohibits applications with the “main purpose” of distributing casual games.
Now, Facebook has said it is ready to lend a helping hand to another Apple company: Epic Games. The company behind the popular video game Fortnite has filed a lawsuit against Apple this summer, accusing Apple of violating antitrust laws by requiring developers to use Apple’s payment system.
Facebook’s director of privacy and public policy, Steve Satterfield, said Wednesday that the social media giant is ready to support the Epic Games lawsuit against Apple and provide any relevant information in the dispute.
The controversial relationship between Facebook and Apple will likely continue to be highlighted in the coming months, as lawmakers in the US and Europe will oppose technology companies. The regulation has come a long way in many ways, O’Leary said.
“Consumers did not understand that they are the products until too much situation. The cat was a bit out of the bag and was hard to recover, “he said.
The European Commission unveiled new content and competition regulations on Tuesday. The digital markets bill focuses on so-called “gateways”, and companies that do not comply with the new rules could receive heavy fines or be forced to sell portions of their business.
However, in leveling off mutual attacks, Facebook and Apple are demonstrating their market power as guardians, Renieris said.
“They have a very public fight and, practically, they keep it that way [that] it is subject to a rather serious regulation “, she said.