Cloudflare 宣佈漲價

Cloudflare 寫了一篇很長的漲價公告:「Adjusting pricing, introducing annual plans, and accelerating innovation」。

25% 的漲幅,本來的 Pro Plan 從 $20/mo 漲到 $25/mo,本來的 Business Plan 從 $200/mo 漲到 $250/mo:

Cloudflare is raising prices for the first time in the last 12 years. Beginning January 15, 2023, new sign-ups will be charged $25 per month for our Pro Plan (up from $20 per month) and $250 per month for our Business Plan (up from $200 per month). Any paying customers who sign up before January 15, 2023, including any currently paying customers who signed up at any point over the last 12 years, will be grandfathered at the old monthly price until May 14, 2023.

然後丟出年費方案,就跟原來的月費方案寄算十二個月一樣的價錢 ($240/y 與 $2400/y):

We are also introducing an option to pay annually, rather than monthly, that we hope most customers will choose to switch to. Annual plans are available today and discounted from the new monthly rate to $240 per year for the Pro Plan (the equivalent of $20 per month, saving $60 per year) and $2,400 per year for the Business Plan (the equivalent of $200 per month, saving $600 per year). In other words, if you choose to pay annually for Cloudflare you can lock in our old monthly prices.

後面就是很長的解釋...

法院認為 Apple 必須在 12 月 9 日前開放行動平台上的第三方支付

大標題是「Judge orders Apple to allow external payment options for App Store by December 9th, denying stay」,小標題是「And Apple announces it will appeal」。

本來 Apple 想要繼續拖延,但法院直接打槍,然後 Apple 決定要再上訴到第九巡迴庭,基本上我們就是在旁邊坐著等看戲...

另外前陣子 Google 宣佈在南韓會開放其他付款機制 (參考「Google 在南韓開放 app 裡面使用其他付款機制了」),就沒看到 Apple 這邊的動作,找了一下新聞只看到 Apple 在南韓的頭決定不幹了:「Apple's top exec in South Korea departs amid dispute over App Store」,也許之後再找看看...

Google 在南韓開放 app 裡面使用其他付款機制了

先前在「南韓對 Apple 與 Google 的 In-App 付款機制的提案」這邊提到南韓的法案將會強迫 AppleGoogle 開放 IAP 的通路,前幾天 Google 正式發出公告會支援其他通路了:「Enabling alternative billing systems for users in South Korea」。

不免俗的,還是會放話說一些 FUD

Alternative billing systems may not offer the same protections or payment options and features of Google Play's billing system—such as parental controls, family payment methods, subscription management, Google Play gift cards, and Play Points.

然後拖一下時間,說正在開發這些功能中:

In the coming weeks and months, we will share implementation details for developers, including instructions for submitting security and customer service verifications and a set of user experience guidelines so users can make an informed choice.

但這應該是第一個強制開放的市場?來等後續 payment gateway 給的數字...

南韓對 Apple 與 Google 的 In-App 付款機制的提案

WSJ 上看到南韓對 AppleGoogle 的 in-app 付款機制提案,強制 Apple 與 Google 讓 app 的開發者 (或是開發商) 使用第三方支付平台:「Google, Apple Hit by First Law Threatening Dominance Over App-Store Payments」。

看不到 WSJ 內文的可以看「Apple and Google must allow developers to use other payment systems, new Korean law declares」這篇,裡面有引用韓國的媒體報導 (英文版):「S. Korea looks set for legislation to curb Google, Apple's in-app billing system」。

要注意這還沒有通過,目前過委員會而已 (parliamentary committee),接下來要表決才會成為正式法律。

先前美國亞利桑那州的法案被擋下來,然後參議院提的法案也還在進行中,看起來還有很硬的仗要打:「由美國參議院提出的 Open App Markets Act」。

先繼續等後續發展,可以想見 Apple 與 Google 一定會想辦法抵制...

Stripe 原來支援 JCB 了啊...

剛剛在買東西的時候故意丟 JCB 的卡號進去,發現 Stripe 認得,找了一下公告資料,發現是去年 2020 年五月支援的:「Expanding support for JCB payments」。

先前在日本買 Live 物販的時候 (2019 年年底,應該是 H-el-icalSee-Saw 這兩場),看到現場是使用 iPad + Stripe 的組合,一開始還驚訝了一下,但被告知不支援 JCB 的時候心裡「...」了一陣子,只能刷 Mastercard 或是 Visa

看起來在去年推出的時候,日本地區是自動開放:

Businesses using Stripe in Japan can now automatically accept payments with JCB, in most cases without any additional work.

其他地區則是逐步開放:

We are rolling out JCB acceptance to businesses in more countries, starting with Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, with more to come. This lets global businesses, from e-commerce sites in Canada to subscription services in Australia, easily transact with JCB cardholders.

如果 2022 年有機會去日本的話,應該會看到更多使用 Stripe 的方案了...

Square 在使用條款裡禁止 AGPLv3+ 的軟體

雖然 AGPL 系列的確不是什麼好貨色,也的確有不少人批評過,但 Square 直接透過自家的平台服務攻擊 AGPLv3+ 就很稀奇了?

在「Square’s terms of service forbid use of AGPL-licensed software in online stores (squareup.com)」這邊看到的,公告的條款 (尚未生效) 是「Additional Point of Sale Terms of Service」這個站台,出自於這段:

B. Content Restrictions. In addition to the restrictions set forth in these Additional Product Terms, the General Terms and Payment Terms, you will not:

[...]

15. use, under any circumstance, any open source software subject to the GNU Affero General Public License v.3, or greater;

是直接指名而不是誤殺,不知道是發生什麼事情...

現在 Hacker News 上有些人猜測是律師團認為 AGPL 會反過來影響 Square 自己的程式碼也被感染?反正現在變成 PR 事件了,加上資訊也不足,先蹲著看...

Spotify 向歐盟投訴 Apple Music 的不公平競爭

Spotify 向歐盟提出不公平競爭的投訴,並且發出新聞稿:「Consumers and Innovators Win on a Level Playing Field」。

重點在於 Spotify 服務透過蘋果的平台會有 30% 的抽成,但 Apple Music 因為自家服務而不需要:

To illustrate what I mean, let me share a few examples. Apple requires that Spotify and other digital services pay a 30% tax on purchases made through Apple’s payment system, including upgrading from our Free to our Premium service. If we pay this tax, it would force us to artificially inflate the price of our Premium membership well above the price of Apple Music. And to keep our price competitive for our customers, that isn’t something we can do.

不過裡面好像沒提到超過一年後的費用會降到 15% (參考「Auto-renewable Subscriptions」),應該會是蘋果向歐盟回應的重點?

Stripe 香港開台,以及 Alipay 與 WeChat Pay 的支援

看到 Stripe 的幾個大動作:「Stripe in Hong Kong + Alipay and WeChat Pay globally」。

一個是進入香港的消息:

Today, we’re excited to officially launch Stripe in Hong Kong.

另外一個是 Alipay (支付寶) 以及 WeChat Pay (微信支付) 可以透過 Stripe 在全球使用:

So, today we’re introducing global support for Alipay and WeChat Pay, connecting Stripe businesses in 25+ countries to the hundreds of millions of Chinese consumers that actively use these payment methods.

尤其是後面的消息,對於中國的使用者方便不少...

Amazon EC2 的 RI 降價

這次 Amazon EC2 主要降的是 Reserved Instances 的部份:「EC2 Price Reductions – Reserved Instances & M4 Instances」。

  • New No Upfront Payment Option for 3 Year Standard RIs
  • Lower Prices for No Upfront Reserved Instances
  • Lower Prices for Convertible Reserved Instances

另外一般性的降價以 m4 為主:「Lower Prices for M4 Instances」,如果拿 t2.large 跟 m4.large 比較,us-west-2 (Oregon) 的價錢就很微妙了:

t2.large	2	Variable	8	EBS Only	$0.094 per Hour
m4.large	2	6.5		8	EBS Only	$0.1 per Hour

如果是 ap-northeast-1 (Tokyo) 的話是:

t2.large	2	Variable	8	EBS Only	$0.128 per Hour
m4.large	2	6.5		8	EBS Only	$0.129 per Hour

雖然 AWS 官方的說法是這樣 (取自「AWS t2 burst mode ECU equivalence」),表示 t2 系列有他特別可以應用的地方,但還是有哪邊覺得很微妙...:

Linode 收 PayPal 了,只是...

Linode 宣佈支援 PayPal 了:「PayPal Payments」,只是:

While any customer can use PayPal to fund their account, new customers will still need to sign up using a credit card. You can use PayPal from then on.

而原因是:

This is in part because we don’t yet have the ability to automatically transfer funds from PayPal. If you intend on paying only via PayPal, you will need to ensure that you have enough credit on your Linode account to cover your next invoice. Otherwise, our system will attempt to collect any remaining balance from the credit card you have on file.

這理由爛爆了 XDDD