Apple’s iOS walled garden is facing its most serious assault yet in the ongoing Epic Games v. Apple trial. Microsoft exec Lori Wright told the court yesterday that Microsoft engaged with Apple to understand why the xCloud game streaming client wasn’t permitted in the App Store, The Verge reports. To illustrate its argument, Microsoft used its Shadow streaming platform, which Apple has allowed in the store. According to Wright, Apple then went and pulled Shadow instead of admitting it was applying the rules arbitrarily.

The trial is centered on Apple’s decision to remove Fortnite from the App Store, an action that Epic openly invited when it added a direct purchase option for the game’s V-bucks virtual currency. This runs afoul of Apple’s developer policy, which requires apps to use its payment platform, thereby guaranteeing Apple a 30 percent cut of all sales. This has been a thorn in the side of developers for years, but Epic is the first developer with enough cash and power to fight back (thanks to the incredible success of Fortnite).

While Epic was bickering with Apple, Microsoft was having a parallel disagreement with Apple about its xCloud game streaming service. As Epic is out to prove Apple is behaving in an anti-competitive manner, Microsoft became a natural ally. Google encountered the same iOS roadblocks with Stadia, but Epic is also embroiled in a legal battle over the Play Store. It’s not surprising the company’s lawyers turned to Microsoft to help make its case instead of Google.

Wright explained that Microsoft appealed Apple’s decision to block xCloud by pointing out that Netflix and Microsoft’s own Shadow have similar business models, and yet both of those apps were allowed in the App Store. In the case of Shadow, users can run a virtual desktop with a high-end PC capable of game streaming. As a result, Apple pulled the Shadow app from its store. Wright insists it wasn’t Microsoft’s intention to tattle on Shadow, and they had no expectation Apple would react the way it did.

The iPhone maker eventually added clear rules about game streaming platforms on the App Store, but the restrictions would hobble a service like xCloud. Microsoft decided instead to rebuild the.

In addition to adding an app for certain TVs, Microsoft has also announced a new streaming stick that will be completely dedicated to xCloud. This will most likely work the same way Google Stadia. In this video tutorial, I show you how to Instantly Play Xbox Games On iPhone and Mac using Xbox Xcloud features.Go here to get started: https://www.xbox.com. Microsoft’s xCloud is a cloud streaming element of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. Users do not need a console to play the more than 100 games which are available. The service works on Safari on a Mac. Microsoft previously tested xCloud on iOS as an app, but had to cancel the project due to Apple's App Store guidelines. Once the new service exits beta testing, users will be able to play Xbox.

Shadow was able to get reinstated to the App Store by framing it as a full virtual PC. While Shadow is capable of playing games, it doesn’t sell any directly. The iPhone maker eventually added clear rules about game streaming platforms on the App Store, but the restrictions would hobble a service like xCloud. Microsoft decided instead to rebuild the service for the browser and skip the App Store entirely. Airing Apple’s dirty laundry probably won’t change how it operates, but it could well turn the case in Epic’s favor.

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Microsoft tried to launch its xCloud game streaming service on the App Store for iPhone and iPad users, but Apple rejected the app due to its strict guidelines. Now emails revealed in the Epic vs. Apple trial on Wednesday show that Apple even removed a similar app from the App Store after its existence was mentioned by Microsoft.

Xcloud Mac App Download

Microsoft began testing xCloud for iOS in February of last year in a private beta, and things were going well until the company decided to release the app on the App Store. For those unfamiliar, xCloud offers an entire catalog of games that can be played on any device over streaming.

Apple claimed that apps like xCloud cannot offer content that hasn’t been previously approved by the company, so the app was never released to the public. Microsoft, of course, tried to argue with Apple to change the company’s decision — as we can see from the emails revealed during the trial between Epic Games and Apple.

As noted by the Verge, Microsoft pointed out that Netflix is an app that offers access to multiple content that is not individually reviewed by Apple, and yet is available on the App Store. More than that, Microsoft told Apple about an app called Shadow, which lets users access their PC game library remotely from any iOS device.

As a result, rather than negotiating, Apple quickly removed Shadow from the App Store.

Microsoft was trying to figure out how Shadow, Netflix, and other similar “interactive” apps were able to exist in the App Store while Apple was refusing to approve xCloud. Microsoft put forward Shadow as an example of such a service, only to see it suddenly removed from the store.

Apple later allowed Shadow to return to the App Store, but only because the app offers full access to a Windows PC, rather than being something specific to gaming (although the app’s main purpose was to let users play PC games on iOS). xCloud, on the other hand, had to be rebuilt as a web app to work on the iPhone and iPad.

In multiple occasions, Apple has taken a stand against apps that offer similar capabilities to the App Store and its own game service Apple Arcade. Last year, the company said that it allows streaming games on the App Store, but only if they’re submitted as individual apps. Aside from saying that it had no intention of prejudicing the Shadow app, Microsoft mentioned that Apple’s decisions related to game streaming on iOS result in a “bad experience for customers.”

Xbox Cloud Gaming Ios Lag

This public spat has now boiled over into the courtroom battle between Epic Games and Apple, with lawyers on Epic’s side questioning Microsoft and Nvidia representatives about their struggles to bring cloud gaming apps to iOS.

Xcloud Coming To Ios

It’s hard to imagine that this will change anything in Apple’s decision not to allow xCloud and other similar services on the App Store, but this will possibly have an impact on the court’s decision as the company has been under investigation for monopoly practices.

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