this post was submitted on 20 Mar 2026
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I agree with most of that for the most part, but... what about Xbox, PlayStation, and Switch? Should they have to allow sideloading/alternative app stores, too? Or do they get a pass? And if so, where do you draw the line?
The difference used to be that consoles were sold at a loss so they could make it back in the licensing, but that's no longer the case. Today, both game consoles and smartphone are sold at profit. The game consoles are using parts from 2020 (ish, in the case of Switch 2) and they're buying them in bulk AND they've jacked the prices way up. So yeah, they're making money on those, so they should be subject to the same rules as Apple and Google.
I agree—Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony shouldn't have exclusive distribution rights for their consoles either. Their distribution systems are inherently monopolistic, and all the more problematic when games are on a trend towards becoming digital-only, enabling even greater profits from the eventual inability to buy used games.