Security isn't a feature Apple and Google invented to justify their cut — it's the actual product, and mandating third-party payment systems is just government-enforced degradation of something that genuinely protects people.
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Should app stores be forced to allow third-party payment systems, even if it risks user security?
50% PRO
50% CON
Pro 5
Con 5
Forcing open payment systems sounds great until a phishing overlay disguised as a payment screen steals your banking credentials, and then everyone acts surprised like this wasn't completely predictable.
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This is basically legislators saying 'we want cheaper apps' while quietly handing the bill to users in the form of fraud risk — the 30% fee argument doesn't hold water when the alternative is a wild west of payment handlers with zero security standards.
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The whole point of a curated ecosystem is that there's one throat to choke when something goes wrong. Scatter payment processing across a dozen unvetted providers and suddenly nobody's accountable when grandma gets defrauded.
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I've had my card skimmed through a sketchy third-party checkout before and it was an absolute nightmare to sort out — why would we deliberately introduce that same risk into app stores where millions of people make purchases every single day?
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Small creators and indie developers are getting crushed under these fee structures and it genuinely breaks my heart. Opening up payments could be the difference between someone's passion project surviving or dying.
The security risk argument is honestly so condescending — adults use third-party payment processors like Stripe and PayPal literally every day without incident, this isn't some unsolvable mystery.
We don't let Visa tell you which stores you can shop at, so why do we let Apple decide where you can spend money on your own phone? It's your device, it should be your choice.
I've been a developer for 8 years and the current system is basically a toll booth on the entire digital economy. The 'security' argument is a fig leaf — these companies just don't want to lose their monopoly rent.
Apple and Google take 30% cuts that get passed directly to us as consumers — forcing open payment systems would drive down prices overnight and that's just math, not ideology.