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Thoughtful, detailed coverage of everything Apple for 33 years
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Tag: App Store

Adam Engst 3 comments

Apple Hit with $2 Billion EU Fine for App Store Restrictions

The European Commission has fined Apple about $2 billion for preventing app developers from telling iOS users about alternative and cheaper music subscription options outside their apps. Apple is appealing.

Josh Centers 45 comments

The EU Forces Open Apple’s Walled Garden

Apple is making major changes to how it distributes iOS apps in the EU due to the European Commission’s Digital Markets Act, but the company is making it clear that it’s only doing so under duress.

Adam Engst 12 comments

App Store Apps May Start Including Payment Links to External Websites

The Epic vs. Apple antitrust lawsuit is finally over. Although Apple won on most counts, the judge ruled it had to allow developers to link to external payment systems rather than using in-app purchases. That may start happening soon.

Adam Engst 5 comments

Helping ckbk Remove Ad Tracking

It pays to speak up. After being introduced to the ckbk cookbook service, Adam Engst expressed his disappointment in the app asking to track and was rewarded a few weeks later with an update that resolved the issue.

Adam Engst 2 comments

Apple Lets App Store Developers Set Prices Using More Numbers

You can look forward to App Store prices containing different numbers now that Apple has introduced 700 more price points—from $0.29 to $10,000—from which developers can select.

Rich Mogull 100 comments

Apple’s App Store Stubbornness May Be iOS’s Greatest Security Vulnerability

Apple’s App Store helped make iPads and iPhones the most secure consumer-focused computers ever created. But Apple’s opaque policy enforcement and payment restrictions are now motivating regulators and courts to get involved, which will likely force changes that will damage consumer safety.

Adam Engst 10 comments

Judge Rules for Apple over Epic Games, Strikes Down App Store Anti-Steering Policies

In Epic Games v. Apple, US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers has come down strongly in favor of Apple, rejecting nearly all of Epic’s claims and fining the company millions of dollars. But Apple suffered a blow too, with the judge determining that Apple’s in-app purchasing policies are anticompetitive.

Josh Centers 1 comment

Several Bricks Removed from Apple’s Garden Wall

Apple has dug in its heels against the clamor for changes to its App Store rules, but a couple of recent settlements show that the company is susceptible to pressure.

Josh Centers 6 comments

New South Korean Law Mandates Alternative App Store Payment Options

A new law in South Korea will force Apple and Google to let developers offer alternative payment methods in their apps.

Glenn Fleishman 43 comments

Apple Justifies iOS App Store’s Tight Control in White Paper

Apple says that the dangers of allowing customers to load arbitrary apps are too severe and that the iOS App Store is a bulwark against ransomware, device hijacking, the invasion of children’s privacy, and other problems common on Android.

Josh Centers 2 comments

Things Learned from the Epic Games v. Apple Lawsuit

We don’t know how the legal fight between Epic Games and Apple over App Store policies will end, but it has made public reams of formerly classified internal documents from both companies. The Verge highlighted some of the most interesting bits.

Josh Centers No comments

Apple Publishes Collection of Privacy Labels for Its Apps

Apple has mandated App Store privacy labels for all apps, but the company is going a step further with its own apps by publishing the complete collection of those labels on the Web to make them easy to scan.

Glenn Fleishman 28 comments

Apple Unveils Stringent Disclosure and Opt-in Privacy Requirements for Apps

Facebook is unhappy with the enhanced privacy requirements that Apple recently unveiled. Apple will soon require that apps ask for and get explicit consent from their users in order to track them across apps and sites—and that’s a good thing. Apple has already added detailed privacy disclosure requirements. Let’s dig into how Apple’s new rules will enhance your privacy.

Josh Centers 2 comments

App Store Wars: Facebook vs. Apple, Publishers vs. Apple, Apple vs. Brave

Josh Centers chronicles the latest battles revolving around the App Store, including Facebook joining Epic Games’ lawsuit against Apple, a group of big-name publishers signing on to the Coalition for App Fairness to pressure Apple and Google, and Apple making the Brave browser put its crypto wallet away.

Adam Engst 30 comments

Hiding Apple’s Big Sur Upgrade Badges

macOS Big Sur has been out for only a short time, but Apple is already pushing it on users by badging the System Preferences Dock icon and displaying a Big Sur-only update to GarageBand. Adam Engst shares a few workarounds that can reduce the annoyance.