Alternative app stores and payment methods: Apple's radical changes in the EU

In future, there will no longer be just one App Store for iOS. Apple is introducing these and other radical changes to fulfil EU requirements.

Alternative app stores, payments via third-party providers and web browsers with their own engine: Apple has announced a number of changes that undermine the company's previous system. They affect the App Store, iOS in general and browsers in particular. The new features are due to be released on iPhones in March with iOS 17.4 - but only in the 27 EU countries. Apple is only doing all this to fulfil the requirements of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which comes into force in March. Nothing will change in Switzerland for the time being either.

Paving the way for alternative app stores

There were times when people "jailbroke" their iPhones. In other words, they exploited security vulnerabilities to download apps outside the App Store. This will no longer be necessary in the EU from March 2024. Apple will then officially allow the installation of "alternative app marketplaces".

You will not be able to find the alternative app stores on your iPhone, but will have to download them via their websites. To get onto the iPhone, these marketplaces need permission from Apple. A certain amount of verification of the suppliers therefore takes place. After installation, you must explicitly authorise an alternative app store to download apps to your device. Once this is done, you can even install apps that violate the rules of Apple's App Store. It is also possible to set an alternative App Store as the default.

Alternative payment methods and less commission

Up to now, Apple has held out its hand for every payment in iOS apps. This will soon come to an end in the EU. App developers will be allowed to integrate third-party payment methods and even bypass Apple completely. In order to remain attractive, Apple is reducing its commission in the EU from 30 per cent to 10 per cent, or 17 per cent for digital goods and services. Apps that continue to process their internal payments via Apple will only pay a fee of 3 per cent.

These changes could lead to a greater choice of payment methods for and in apps. There is also the possibility that apps will become cheaper as Apple reduces its commission.

In addition, all banking and wallet apps will gain access to NFC in the iPhone. This means that Apple Pay will no longer be the only way to pay with a smartphone within the EU.

More variety in browsers

Safari is no longer the only browser on iOS. However, Apple has so far forced all other browsers to use Webkit. This is the Safari engine. By opening up, Chrome, Firefox and co. can now add functions and extensions to their programmes in the EU that were previously not possible on iOS.

From March, browsers under iOS will also be able to use other engines. Google, for example, has been working on Chrome for iOS without Webkit for over a year. Google's browser engine is called Chromium and is also used by other suppliers such as Microsoft (Edge), Brave, Opera and Arc. Chromium is therefore the top dog among browser engines. Only Gecko from Firefox has any further relevance.

No changes to iMessage

In a detailed press release, Apple also points out the disadvantages of alternative app stores and payment methods. These lack functions such as family sharing and Apple is not the point of contact in the event of problems.

However, Apple has not said a word about iMessage. There were speculations that the DMA would also have an impact on the chat app. There was speculation that Apple would have to open it up for messaging with other apps. This appears to have already been fulfilled with the worldwide support of the RCS standard.

Game streaming in the App Store

Game streaming services such as "Geforce Now" or "Xbox Cloud Streaming" were previously only available on the iPhone via the browser. This is now changing worldwide and not just in the EU. Apple is opening up its App Store for game streaming apps and services.