Apple is being forced to comply with European Union regulations and is preparing to allow third-party app stores on iPhone and iPad. This is due to anti-trust regulations, which will now force technology companies to remove exclusivity on their devices. Software engineering and services employees are engaged in a major push to open up key elements of Apple’s platforms
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This means that any third-party software could side-step Apple’s restrictions on apps and their 30 percent commission it forces on any payments in the app store. For years, regulators and software makers have complained that Apple and Google, which run the two biggest mobile app stores, wield too much power as gatekeepers.
The main new European law, dubbed the Digital Markets Act, takes effect in the coming months, but companies aren’t required to comply with all of the rules until 2024. Government officials in the US and other countries have pushed for similar laws but haven’t got as far as the EU yet. The laws apply to technology companies with market valuations of at least €75-billion and a minimum of 45 million monthly users within the EU.
The new laws will also remove some mandates Apple have held on any apps in the App Store, such as on any browser apps, which must be built using Apple’s WebKit, which is its proprietary browsing engine the company uses with Safari. Apple would need to remove this mandate, meaning browsers like Chrome can then use its own development tools.
Apple is also working to open up other features to third-party apps, including more camera technologies and its near-field communications chip — at least in a limited fashion. Currently, only the company’s Wallet app and Apple Pay service can use the NFC chip to enable mobile wallet functionality. Apple has faced pressure to let third-party financial apps have the same capability.
