iPhones at the Apple store in Los Angeles/Walla!
Technology, Yanon Ben Shoshan
After months of reports - it's official: in order to comply with the European Union's Digital Markets Act, which will require platforms to become more open to competition, Apple announced a series of changes that will come as part of the iOS 17.4 update - some of them specifically for European users.
As reported, Apple will allow the installation of alternative stores to the App Store and the downloading of third-party applications (in the European Union only).
In addition, users will be able to make use of alternative payment systems (such as Google's. The new update will also bring with it a virus detection system for apps installed through a third-party store, so that a real alert will be received when the device is suspected of being damaged.
Another change is the option to set a different default browser from Apple's Safari. Until now, Apple has limited its users to Safari only, which has drawn criticism for violating competition. Now, users will be able to choose to use other popular browsers such as Chrome or Firefox. Also, Apple's voice assistant, Siri, will be able to read messages in any A language that is not the language defined for its use (for example - you can use Siri in English, and it will be able to read in Hebrew when necessary).
For the first time: Apple will allow installing alternative stores to the App Store and downloading third-party apps/ShutterStock
"The changes we're announcing today meet the requirements of the EU Digital Markets Act, while protecting EU users from the inevitable increased privacy and security threats brought about by this regulation," said Phil Schiller, who leads the app store.
At the same time, Schiller raised concerns about the risks involved in direct installations, and stated that allowing any website to download apps poses a significant risk to the user."
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Raised concerns about the risks involved in direct installations.
Phil Schiller at Apple's announcement event, 2019/GettyImages
If other countries introduce similar legislation, alternative app stores may expand beyond the EU.
In the past, Apple has argued that installing apps outside the AppStore would "undermine the privacy and security protections" that iPhone users rely on, leaving people vulnerable to malware, fraud, data tracking and other issues.
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