Courts are forcing Apple to abandon its 30% revenue-sharing model for external payments. New rules mandate that fees must align with the actual costs of providing the service, like a toll road, rather than being a tax on the developer's overall economic success.
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Businesses become critically dependent on platforms for even a small fraction of their revenue (e.g., 20%). This 'monopsony power' creates a stronger lock-in than user network effects, as losing that customer base can bankrupt the business.
Dropout implements a profit-sharing model for its talent, not just for ethical reasons, but because it's administratively simpler than a traditional, complex royalty system. This approach streamlines finance operations while still rewarding contributors for the platform's overall success.
Value-based flat fees should not just reflect the initial time estimate. As a business becomes more efficient and reduces the time required for a task, the flat fee should remain the same. This allows the business, not the client, to reap the financial reward of its accumulated experience.
The dominant per-user-per-month SaaS business model is becoming obsolete for AI-native companies. The new standard is consumption or outcome-based pricing. Customers will pay for the specific task an AI completes or the value it generates, not for a seat license, fundamentally changing how software is sold.
Unlike high-margin SaaS, AI agents operate on thin 30-40% gross margins. This financial reality makes traditional seat-based pricing obsolete. To build a viable business, companies must create new systems to capture more revenue and manage agent costs effectively, ensuring profitability and growth from day one.
Laws intended for copyright, like the DMCA's anti-circumvention clause, are weaponized by platforms. They make it a felony to create software that modifies an app's behavior (e.g., an ad-blocker), preventing competition and user choice.
While TikTok's on-platform digital courses offer a new monetization path, the revenue model is highly unfavorable. After Google takes a 30% app store cut, TikTok takes another 50% of the remaining revenue, leaving creators with just 35%.
By mandating its own WebKit engine and banning more capable alternatives on iOS, Apple prevents web applications from competing effectively with native apps, pushing developers toward its lucrative App Store ecosystem.
OpenAI's platform strategy, which centralizes app distribution through ChatGPT, mirrors Apple's iOS model. This creates a 'walled garden' that could follow Cory Doctorow's 'inshittification' pattern: initially benefiting users, then locking them in, and finally exploiting them once they cannot easily leave the ecosystem.
The AI value chain flows from hardware (NVIDIA) to apps, with LLM providers currently capturing most of the margin. The long-term viability of app-layer businesses depends on a competitive model layer. This competition drives down API costs, preventing model providers from having excessive pricing power and allowing apps to build sustainable businesses.
