Apple's App Store is no longer the sole source of iPadOS apps

0comments
We may earn a commission if you make a purchase from the links on this page.
Apple iPad display
The European Digital Markets Act (DMA) is the gift that keeps on giving when it comes to the life, liberty, and happiness of iPhone and iPad users in the European Union. After allowing third-party app stores for the iPhone there, Apple is now letting in App Store alternatives for iPadOS as well.

Earlier this year, Apple found itself compelled to open up its ecosystem in the European Union. DMA singled out 6 major tech companies, including Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and TikTok’s owner ByteDance, as gatekeepers, mandating changes to how they operate within the EU. 

Get iPhone 16 Pro Max at Amazon with Boost Mobile

Go Pro Max this fall with style and choose the supreme iPhone 16 Pro Max. The latest ultra-premium iOS smartphone is available at Amazon with Boost Mobile. The device sells for under $1 with Boost Mobile, plan and activation required ($70.55/mo).

Get the iPhone 16 Pro at Amazon with Boost Mobile

The latest AI-enhanced iPhone 16 Pro is available for purchase at Amazon with Boost Mobile. The smartphone arrives for less than $1, provided that you pick a wireless service plan by Boost Mobile ($65/mo) and activate your device.

Get the iPhone 16 at Amazon with Boost Mobile

Get the iPhone 16 to experience Apple Intelligence and get things done effortlessly. The smartphone is available at Amazon with Boost Mobile for 100% off. You have to pick a Boost Mobile wireless plan ($65/mo). The deal requires activation.
For instance, this pushed Apple to permit third-party app stores on its iPhone, and the first ones, like AltStore PAL, have now become a reality. The App Store alternative that comes for iPhones with iOS 17.4 or a later version in the EU can be accessed by paying €1.50 plus tax per year. This annual subscription includes coverage for Apple’s Core Technology Fee (CTF), which is required for installing the third-party app marketplace itself. 

It also entails clicking through multiple warning messages from Apple, making sure you are really, really sure you want to install apps from outside the App Store. But if you keep at it and click enough times, you will eventually get it installed.

It remains to be seen if the third-party iPadOS app stores will follow a similar trajectory, but the European Commission obviously deems Apple an iPadOS gatekeeper and its app store enough of a monopoly to demand software sales from alternative channels.

According to Apple, "users in the EU can download iPadOS apps on the App Store and through alternative distribution." It also adds that "alternative browser engines can be used in iPadOS apps" just as it was allowed on the iPhone.

Developers taking parts in the Alternative Terms Addendum for Apps in the EU are informed that "iPadOS first annual installs will begin to accrue and the lower App Store commission rate will apply," but the big takeaway is that neither iOS nor iPadOS are now the walled gardens they used to be, at least for iPhone and iPad users on the Old Continent.

Recommended Stories

Loading Comments...
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless