Progress Report & Apple's iOS Fee Raise (Patreon)

Hello, everyone!

This post is made available to all paid subscribers, because it is important that as many people as possible see the back half of it.

For the front half, I apologize for completely spacing last week's Progress Report. The truth is, there isn't much to report, though.

All of the material was sent out to voice talent for recording last week, and I'm now just sitting on my hands waiting for audio to come back to me. And I won't lie, it's driving me fucking insane.

I'm the kind of person who gets restless after two days of vacation. I sent everything out on July 26, with a deadline set on August 16 (which was the earliest that a voice talent gave me as when they could reliably get their audio in to me). So that's 21 days of me waiting around.

The worst part is that I'm in a creative bind. I have a hard time motivating myself to make small one-off stuff, because I just find it so boring and a waste of time compared to full videos. But I don't want to commit to making any larger projects, because I know that once the audio comes in, I'm going to be locked in for another 3 or so months as I work on stuff, putting whatever I start on hold indefinitely.

On that front, I know that the Symmetra audio has been recorded, though it hasn't been processed and sent back to me yet. I haven't heard anything yet about all the other audio, but I don't intend to start prodding until the deadline has come and passed. So by next Monday, I should have a firm pulse on where things are in that capacity. And hopefully I'll have all of the audio delivered and I'll be happily chopping away at getting it all installed and timings adjusted to fit it, and I'll have sent a rough cut off to my sound designer to process as I work on lip-syncing everything.

Now onto the reason why this post is near-public: Apple's bullshit.

I'm sure you all have been inundated with emails from Patreon and notifications from creators about it already, and I apologize for being another message in the pile, but I want to make it perfectly clear what is going on, where I stand on it, and what all you can do about it if you're affected.

Long story short is Apple has been installing bullshit 30% fees on all in-app purchases on their iOS devices, including on subscription fees. At the same time, they've been strong-arming app creators into conforming to their strict definition of a subscription (so they can apply the 30% fee to them) under threat of removing their apps from the Apple Store.

Patreon is one such service that Apple has strong-armed into this position. The change to a subscription model doesn't mean much to my page in particular, as I have already been on a monthly system. For all existing non-iOS-using subscribers, nothing at all will change - Patreon's Creator notification says that you all will continue to be charged at the first of the month. For all members who join after November 2024, you will be charged on the same day each month rather than the first of each month. And for all iOS users, new and old alike, Apple will be taking a 30% cut from your subscription.

It is very important that this is made perfectly clear to everyone who is using the iOS Patreon App:

The 30% cut only applies if you directly use the iOS Patreon App. If you subscribe to Creators' Patreons through the browser (even the browser on your phone!), this 30% cut will not apply to you!

Patreon are not allowed to tell you this on the iOS app - Apple has an explicit clause that telling app users that cheaper alternatives to the app exists is grounds for the app being removed from the Apple store.

This is important to know, because Patreon is taking a very passive-aggressive stance on this Apple fee. By default, they will raise all Patreon subscriptions that people using the iOS App uses by 30%. They claim this is to ensure that Creators make the same amount of money as before this Apple change, but a very real side-effect of this is that Patreon are explicitly disincentivizing people from using the iOS App.

Creators have the option to not raise prices on iOS App users, taking the 30% hit themselves. At first, I was going to do this, but upon further reflection, I've decided against it. I am going to allow Patreon to raise iOS App user subscriptions by 30% - because I think you should stop using the iOS App!

Again, if you stop using the iOS App and instead subscribe directly through the browser, then the 30% fee does not apply to you. Which means that Patreon's 30% price hike will not apply to you either, because you're not using the iOS App.

If you use the iOS Patreon App to subscribe to me or anyone else, cancel those subscriptions and subscribe directly through the browser instead!

This is an absolutely scummy move on Apple's part, and they should absolutely not get rewarded for it in any way. Canceling your subscriptions through the iOS App and instead subscribing through the browser deprives Apple not only of this bullshit 30% fee, but also lowers their use metrics which reflects badly on their quarterly reports. If enough people stop using subscription apps through the Apple store - and I mean apps across the board, not just the Patreon App - then Apple's investors will see line go down, which will make them very angry with Apple.

Until the legal system steps in and forces Apple to undo this bullish decision - which I have full confidence Apple will be sued to Hell and back over this blatant anticonsumer and strongarming behavior - the best we can do is invoke the wrath of their investors.

Don't give Apple a single red cent. If you use the iOS Patreon App, cancel your subscriptions through it, delete the app off your device, and subscribe to your favorite creators through the browser instead.

That's all for now, fuck Apple, and until next week, everyone!