It was a matter of time, but Apple is going to allow third-party app stores on the iPad starting next week, on September 16. This change will come with the next major release of iPadOS, the operating system designed specifically for the iPad.
The move is related to the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), a set of market fairness and pro-competition rules. Last fall, the Commission shared a list of six tech companies that have been designated as “gatekeepers” as they operate so-called “central platform services” (CPS). A seventh has since been added.
In the case of Apple, the Commission initially designated three products and services as CPS: its iOS mobile operating system, its App Store app distribution platform and its Safari web browser. Then, in April, it announced that it would add Apple’s iPadOS to the list.
While the number of iPadOS users did not meet the threshold to fall within the scope of the DMA, the Commission has some leeway in the designations and said it considered there were strong blocking effects for business users in particular.
Apple has had six months to update iPadOS and ensure it complies with the DMA. This brings us to Friday’s announcement: starting with iPadOS 18, EU users will be able to install alternative app stores. Similarly, web browser developers will be able to release iPad browsers with their own browsing engines.
Given the different DMA enforcement schedule for iOS, recent changes to iOS in the EU may be an indication of what will happen for iPad users in the EU.
There are five third-party app stores already available for iOS in the EU. One example, AltStore PAL, was the first alternative app store available for iOS in the EU. You can use it to download the Delta video game emulation app, the UTM virtual machine app, the iTorrent torrent app, and more.
Apps are certified by Apple for security reasons before they can be released on alternative app stores. App developers also have to sign new commercial terms with Apple and pay a controversial “core technology fee” above a certain threshold.
Epic Games also launched its alternative iOS app store in the EU so people can download and play Fortnite, Rocket League Sideswipe and Fall Guys on their iPhones. The company has already said it plans to bring Fortnite and its other games to the iPad.
As for web browsers, while third-party browsers like Chrome and Firefox have been available for a while, they all still use Apple’s WebKit browser engine to load web content. Tech companies have not taken advantage of the DMA to release an EU-specific browser app for European users so far.
(tags to translate)Apple
