Time for an alternative app store. It is needed across the world. Single point of failure and control is not good for any ecosystem. Too much dependence on one single entity if one wants to exists in that is really some sh*ty concept.
Break free and break good! EU has to help here...
Not really. Just allow users to install applications without a middleman. Like we've been doing since forever in pretty much any other platform.
The whole point of an app store is to limit and control what a user is allowed to run. Alternative app stores just shift the blame elsewhere
There are too many apps with local data that can only be backed up via iCloud. For what’s essentially an archive upload to storage, Apple raises a lot of barriers.
Apple is pulling some shit that will probably be declared illegal the moment it hits the courts with installation fees when distributing apps outside of Apple's ecosystem, but AFAIK Epic is taking care of that for AltStore and Mobivention probably factors it into its corporate pricing structure.
There's a lack of apps on these stores, though.
https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/03/17/ios-notarizations-human-r... https://mjtsai.com/blog/2024/06/14/utm-blocked-outside-app-s...
"have it evaluated based on the Notarization Review Guidelines (a subset of the App Review Guidelines)" https://developer.apple.com/help/app-store-connect/distribut...
And you need a few million dollars in the bank to be allowed to implement one (plus some other ridiculous requirements). The whole system still makes it impossible for a small team to develop and shift software without a huge middleman