iPhone Apple store in Los Angeles/Walla!
Technology, Yanon Ben Shoshan
Yesterday (Tuesday) Apple released the iOS 17.4 update, which brings with it an audible change in the company's policy:
for the first time, iPhone users will be able to install third-party applications outside the official App Store, in order to comply with the European Union's Digital Markets Act , which requires platforms to become more open to competition.
Until now, Apple required all developers to distribute their apps through its app store, charging a 30% commission on each in-app purchase.
Now, following the new law, developers in the European Union will be able to offer their own app stores and distribute apps to users through them.
However, Apple will still charge a fee of 50 cents per download after the app reaches 1 million downloads a year.
How will it work?
iPhone users within the European Union will receive an update notification about alternative app stores, optional browsers (other than Safari) and different payment options.
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.
Summary of Apple/Yenon Ben Shoshan's announcement event
Phil Schiller, who leads the app store, already in January referred to the innovations and said that "the changes meet the requirements of the Digital Markets Act in the European Union, while protecting EU users from the inevitable increased privacy and security threats that this regulation brings with it."
On the other hand, Schiller raised concerns about the risks involved in direct installations, and stated that allowing any site to download applications poses a significant risk to the user.
The approval process for alternative app stores may take some time, but it has already been announced that an app store aimed at enterprises called Mobivention will be available starting March 7.
More in Walla!
The intriguing process of recycling metal packaging
In cooperation with the Tamir Recycling Corporation
What else is new in the iOS 17.4 update?
The update includes new emojis including mushroom, phoenix, lime, broken chain and moving heads available on the emoji keyboard, alongside 18 people and body emojis that add the option to view them in both directions
The Music Recognition feature lets you add songs you've recognized to your Apple Music playlists and library, as well as Apple Music Classical
Added a new option for Siri to announce messages received by you in any supported language
The "Stolen device protection" feature supports the option for increased security in all locations
The Battery Health feature in Settings shows battery cycle count, date of manufacture and first use on iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models
Fixed an issue where contact images do not appear in the Finder app
Fixed an issue for dual SIM users where the phone number switches from primary to secondary and is visible to the group they sent a message to
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