Apple, as Usual, Provides the Exception to the "Openness" Rule

There is little question but that the "Internet" is not as "open" as it used to be, with countries putting up the equivalent of firewalls, with the growth of opt-in communities and use of mobile and other apps that are not actually "open" in the old sense of the term.

Whether the end user value obtained from the variety of different Web experiences is better or worse is a matter of interpretation. Apple has been a salient exception to the "open" trend. But Apple's achievements also illustrate the fact that "closed" approaches to user experience sometimes are embraced by end users.