Apple reportedly allows sideloading apps with iOS 17 • businessroundups.org

After fighting vehemently against the “sideloading” of alternative app stores on the iPhone, Apple is now evidently looking to enable them to comply with European law with iOS 17 due out next year. The report of Bloomberg also noted that Apple is exploring opening up its camera and Near Field Communication (NFC) stack to developers.

Apple’s walled garden approach has so far stipulated that iPhone users can only download apps from Apple’s own App Store. Android, on the other hand, allows users to install third-party app stores on their devices.

The Bloomberg report says that Apple’s sideloading project has already started under the company’s VP of engineering Andreas Wendker, who reports to Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior VP of Software Engineering. The project also reportedly involves senior executives such as Jeff Robbin and Eddie Cue.

The European Digital Market Law (DMA) will come into force next year and companies will have until 2024 to comply. Under the new rules, Big Tech must allow alternative app stores on their platforms to give users more choice, and it’s likely Apple is now preparing to comply.

Apple has already committed to supporting USB-C due to pressure from the EU to standardize charging ports. With the DMA looming, it could force the Cupertino-based company to allow sideloading as well.

A win for developers?

If Apple opens up to other app stores, developers won’t have to pay a 30% (or in some cases 15%) fee to the tech giant for in-app purchases. This could appease many companies — including Spotify, Tinder/Match Group and, more recently, Twitter — who have criticized Apple’s fee structure.

Apple currently allows some developers to use third-party payment systems in certain markets, for example, all developers in South Korea and developers of dating apps in the Netherlands. However, they still have to pay Apple a hefty fee.

If the DMA forces Apple to allow third-party app stores in the EU, chances are regulators elsewhere will follow suit, and Apple’s current work to enable sideloading in iOS 17 could be expanded to support other jurisdictions as well.

This news comes as Portugal-based Aptoid, an alternative app store for Android, is launching an iOS version for jailbreakers. Company co-founder and CEO Paulo Trezentos told businessroundups.org he believes Apple will indeed be open to third-party app stores.

The Bloomberg report also noted that the new EU rule could arm Apple to open up more parts of its ecosystem, including the camera, NFC stack and browser engine.

Currently, all browsers on iPhone, including Chrome and Firefox, must use Apple’s WebKit engine. But Apple is considering removing that construction. We may have to wait for Apple’s official announcement to see how other engines might work on iOS and what features that enable in other browsers.

Opening up the NFC stack could mean other payment companies could integrate their tap-to-pay services in addition to Apple Pay. Apple has already faced criticism from the EU, which said in February that a standard contactless payment technology like NFC should be open to all carriers. This could allow Apple’s competitors like Stripe and Square to build their own integrated solutions for the iPhone.

Apple’s restraint

Apple executives constantly argued how bad sideloading would be for user security. It even introduced a developer mode in iOS 16 to prevent users from “accidentally installing potentially malicious software on their devices”. Issues such as sideloading and App Store fees have also been at the center of Apple’s longstanding Epic battle.

In both the Netherlands and South Korea, where Apple has been forced to open up its platform a bit, the company has made it difficult for developers to use third-party payment systems. It required app makers to show extensive warnings to users when they are about to use an alternative payment system, and in some cases Apple has asked them to submit a separate app file for a particular market.

While it technically complies with local regulators’ rules, the company is causing friction so that developers reconsider switching payment systems.

Likewise, if Apple opens things up to comply with EU regulations for iOS 17, it could choose to make life difficult for developers and consumers alike, meaning only the most tech-savvy users will choose to sideload . In addition, the company could display banners and warnings about using a third-party app store, deterring potential switchers from sticking with Apple’s App Store.

The Coalition for App Fairness — a collective that fights big tech platforms like Apple and Google for fairer distribution, with members like Basecamp, Match Group and Spotify — said in a statement that the reports that Apple allows sideloading is “an admission that they have a grip on the competition”.

“It is clear that Apple will only relinquish its control over the distribution of apps on iOS devices and its exercise of gatekeeper power within the App Store in response to pressure from policymakers. The European Union’s passage of the Digital Markets Act forces Apple to hand, and strong enforcement of the law is vital to level the playing field for developers in the mobile application ecosystem,” it said.

The organization urged lawmakers in the US to take note and pass it on the Open App Markets Act (OAMA) — which could force Apple and Google to allow third-party app stores, sideloading, and alternate payment systems as soon as possible. Epic’s Tim Sweeney also threw in his hat and urged Congress to step up and follow Europe’s lead.

Apple was not responding to businessroundups.org’s questions at the time of publishing, but will update here if and when we hear back.