Ángel Jiménez from Luis USA

USA

Updated Thursday, January 25, 2024-19:01

Since the

launch of the App Store in 2008

, Apple's business model has been very simple.

iPhones can only install applications distributed through this store and Apple charges a commission of between 15% and 30% of the sales price of each application.

It is what is commonly

known as Apple's "walled garden"

but, starting next March, that model will become more complicated due to the European Digital Markets Law.

The new law will force Apple to allow

alternative app

stores and make changes to some of the limitations it until now imposed on app developers.

It's a change you'll make reluctantly.

The company boasts that the high level of control it has over the distribution of apps guarantees a more secure environment.

In its 15 years of history, the platform has not suffered a massive attack through a malicious application, for example, and users

enjoy a high level of privacy

(the personal information that their application developers have access to). users is very limited).

The arrival of new forms of distribution and payment systems

will open new vectors that could be used to attack devices

or deceive users.

"Apple cannot eliminate these risks, but within the limitations of the DMA, we have taken steps to reduce them," the company explains.

The current model is also, evidently, very profitable for the company.

To get one of the scale of the App Store, it is enough to point out that in 2022 alone the store moved

close to 1.1 billion dollars from the sale of applications and purchases within those applications

.

Most of that money ends up in the pockets of developers but the commissions from these sales are increasingly important within Apple's accounts.

The changes could alter those incomes.

Apple will continue to charge commissions, even on applications distributed in these third-party stores

, but they will obviously be lower.

New app stores

For European users of the company's devices, the changes that the Digital Markets Law will bring will fundamentally translate into

new options when purchasing applications

, the possibility of

using browsers other than Safari by default

(and that work with different technologies to Webkit, the Safari engine) and the ability to

pay with your phone without having to use the Apple Wallet application or the Apple Pay system

.

The changes currently affect only the iPhone.

On the iPad, Apple Watch and AppleTV everything will continue as before

, although the European Union is still considering whether iPadOS should also make these changes.

Of these three changes, the first is the most important.

Starting in March, and with the arrival of version 17.4 of the iOS operating system, users will have the option to install

alternative application stores

on their phones and purchase their applications through them.

These stores will have their own rules about the content they distribute and their own payment methods, although they can use Apple Pay if they wish by paying Apple a commission for it.

When installing these stores and purchasing applications, users will see

several warnings on the iPhone screen

informing them of the risks of using third-party payment services and applications that do not come from the App Store.

In addition to these warnings, Apple will maintain some security control over the apps.

As with the Mac,

developers will need to validate apps with Apple before distributing them through other stores

(a process known as notarization and ensures that the apps come from the authentic developer).

This process

will continue to include a review process

that will ensure that the app does what it claims to do and does not pose a risk to the user.

Apple

may also stop an app from running

if it later discovers that it contains malicious code,

even if it comes from another app store

.

Users will also have new configuration options to accept or block applications that come from a specific store.

Apple will also allow applications to access

streaming

games within the App Store

, a policy change that

will apply worldwide

, not just in Europe and that also affects the iPad and AppleTV.

Safari is not alone

There are two other big changes coming in iOS 17.4.

iPhone users will now be able

to choose browsers other than Safari

by default and these browsers will not have to use the Webkit engine, developed by Apple for the browser.

Although Apple already allowed browsers other than Safari to be installed, for practical purposes they worked only as a cosmetic alteration.

The browser engine and the technologies they had access to were the same as those used by Safari.

Now they will be able to use their own engine, like Chromium in the case of Chrome, for example.

Apple, however, will only authorize developers to implement these alternative browser engines after meeting specific criteria and

committing to a series of ongoing privacy

and security requirements, including regular security updates.

Another part of the iPhone user experience that opens with 17.4 in Europe is the ability to use the NFC chip inside the phone to pay from third-party apps.

Until now,

only the Wallet Application

and the cards stored in it could be used through the Apple Pay platform.

This change will allow a bank, for example, to have virtual cards and offer to pay with them within its app.

Changes in the AppStore

The AppStore will still exist, obviously, but there are some changes.

The most important thing is that developers who decide to distribute their apps through it, as until now,

will be able to do so using alternative

payment platforms.

The app will continue to be downloaded from the App Store, but a different service can be used when paying.

As with alternative stores, before paying the user

will receive a warning

explaining the risk involved in using the alternative service and providing personal and banking information to an external provider.

Apple will also allow, required by the new law, the option to link from the app to the developer's website to purchase digital goods or access offers and discounts.

Apple, of course, will not offer refunds on app purchases that occur outside of its payments system or its store.

Developers will have to choose

For developers, the new situation in Europe somewhat complicates the commission scheme that was used until now.

They will have, fundamentally, two options.

The first is to maintain

distribution through the App Store

as before, with the 15% or 30% commissions that Apple charges depending on the developer's revenue volume (free applications have no commission),

using the payment system from Apple

and with the same conditions they had until now.

In this case, nothing changes for them, although from now on they will have access to more customer data

and new audience measurement tools

.

This system is not compatible with distribution in third-party stores or the use of alternative payment systems.

The other option is to move to a new block commission system that separates commissions depending on the services chosen.

App sales commissions in the App Store

will be between 10% and 17%

(instead of 15% and 30%).

To this figure, 3% should be added for payment management if you choose to use Apple's payment platform.

For iPadOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS developers in Europe, the changes regarding alternative application stores do not apply, but they will be able to choose a

payment platform other than Apple's

when selling their applications in the App Store .

In that case, the commission will be reduced by 3% (although they will be subject to the new commission of the alternative provider)

Lastly, and perhaps the most important change, Apple will establish under the new system

a fixed commission of 50 cents for each first installation of the app

once the first million installations are exceeded.

Only the first installs of each European user per year count - deleting and reinstalling the app has no effect - and there are exceptions for government, non-profit and educational apps.

This commission, however,

also applies to applications distributed through alternative application stores

.

Apple justifies it as an essential services fee, basically intended to pay for the support of the technologies and tools that developers use to create Apple Apps and servers.

Developers

will have access to a calculator

within Apple's tools to estimate whether the jump to the new commission system is worth it.

The company estimates that with the changes to the Digital Markets Law, 99% of

developers in Europe will maintain or reduce

the commissions they pay to Apple.

Less than 1% of developers will be affected by the flat commission.