You are making a mistake in not realizing that is Apples end game to make Mac OS much more like iOS. Don't you think they realize how much money they are making off of iOS developers? They want the same thing for desktops. Not to mention the huge amount they would save in customer support from not allowing users to do anything beyond Apples control on their machines.
The truth is for Apple this might as well be a great business decision. It is probably in their best interests, because their goal at the end of the day is to make as much money as possible. There is nothing wrong with that I just won't be buying it.
Apple makes money selling hardware. The money they make from iOS developers is a drop in the ocean — the App Store is merely a means to an end; to provide users with lots of great apps, so more people buy Apple hardware.
Sorry, but that's not true at all. iTunes alone makes Apple over $1 billion in revenue per quarter. That's a lot of money and alone could almost vie for a Fortune 500 listing.
Revenue is irrelevant. The question is how much profit iTunes draws in. I don't believe that Apple has ever released exact figures, but I've always heard that iTunes is a fairly low-margin business for them, so it's contributions to Apple's total profits are probably much lower than the contributions from the Mac business. Granted, the App Store may draw in much higher margins, but talking about revenue is still missing the point.
Yeah, I exaggerated. But out of $20.34 billion in revenue this quarter, that revenue is still a sliver. That sliver isn't going to lit Steve's eyes up and get him to go all crazy. You don't get Apple levels of success by acting shortsighted or stupid.
The truth is for Apple this might as well be a great business decision. It is probably in their best interests, because their goal at the end of the day is to make as much money as possible. There is nothing wrong with that I just won't be buying it.