in a nutshell
- Apple plans to allow the installation of iOS apps from outside sources due to impending EU regulations, Bloomberg reports.
- The move could make it easier for developers to build apps around NFTs and expand the ability to make cryptocurrency payments via iPhones and iPads.
Apple The “Walled Garden” Ecosystem This design can account for up to 30% of iOS app and service sales, frustrating both users and creators. But a new report suggests that Apple plans to open up its ecosystem. NFTs It may expand the ability to make crypto payments on mobile.
bloomberg Sources familiar with the plans have reported that Apple plans to allow iPhones and iPads to install apps from external sources outside of its own App Store. The change comes in response to the EU’s Digital Markets Act, which requires tech companies to fully comply with his restrictions by 2024.
The rollout of support for external apps from third-party sources and marketplaces will initially begin only in Europe to comply with the new legislation, according to the report. functionality can be extended to other regions, depending on whether
Apple is reportedly aiming to release the feature in the iOS 17 software update, which is expected to come out next fall, following its normal annual release schedule.
The company is considering whether to allow third-party apps to use its own payment infrastructure. bloomberg Rather than force developers to route payments through Apple’s own payment settings, they insist. Once this particular shift is implemented, it could become much easier to spend cryptocurrencies through iPhone and iPad apps.
The reported changes come not only in conflicting philosophies, but also in growing opposition to Apple’s closed ecosystem. Web3This not only leads to the decentralized ethos of NFT, but also to limitations on how apps can utilize NFT assets. In October, Apple updated its developer guidelines, NFT said: Not for use with access gates For in-app functionality or content.
Purchases of NFTs are also subject to Apple’s 30% fee. iOS apps for marketplaces like OpenSea and Magic Eden only allow users to browse her NFTs. don’t buy or sell them through the app.
Apple’s NFT rule changes also wreaked havoc on existing iOS apps. Coinbase recently announced that it needs Disable NFT transfer Through the mobile Wallet app, Apple said users would have to pay 30% of the network gas fee (like ethereum) for actions. Coinbase explained that it would be “impossible” to implement that request.
Dan Finlay, co-founder of popular cryptocurrency wallet app meta mask A former Apple employee who tweeted in support of Coinbase said: to call out Apple’s “abuse of monopoly rights”. He suggested that MetaMask next he could be subject to Apple’s rules, adding, “I’m absolutely united here.”
Apple’s reported upcoming plans to open up the ecosystem could benefit NFT and crypto apps that are currently restricted or hampered by App Store requirements. It can be installed via source and does not rely on Apple’s strict policies, bloomberg reports that Apple may enact additional “security requirements” for external apps.
The move could also benefit the growing Web3 metaverseas widely reported, Apple Development of mixed reality headset Many Web3 developers are building towards a metaverse defined by cross-platform interoperability, using NFTs to represent ownership of freely available assets across the space.
Web3 developers aren’t the only ones unhappy with Apple’s current model. Epic Games sues AppleLike Google with the Android Play Store after blocking the popular Fortnite game by adding a third-party payment model.
a previous judgment What may have forced Apple to allow third-party payments was late in the endand companies are still embroiled in a legal battle. Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney tweeted about today’s report, saying lawmakers could pass a similar law to force Apple to open up its ecosystem in the US as well.
Bloomberg contributor Mark Gurman says Apple is preparing to release iOS to competing app stores, but only in Europe.
This puts American developers under serfdom in the country where Apple was founded.
Congress must pass the Open Apps Market Act! https://t.co/GnCChgi0hX
— Probably Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) December 13, 2022
If external apps were only allowed in Europe, “we would be serfdoming American developers in the country where Apple was founded,” Sweeney tweeted. “Congress must pass the Open Apps Market Act!”
new twitter owner Elon Musk recently Complained about Apple’s policyWhen murmured Ask if it’s Apple[hates] Free speech after the company cut advertising costs on its social media platform”. Musk also claimed that Apple was considering removing the Twitter app, but later wrote it down In a ‘misunderstanding’ after meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook.
