Apple to Allow External App Stores in Major Overhaul Prompted by EU Regulations – NFT Boom Incoming?
Tech giant Applewill reportedly allow iPhone and iPad users to install non-App Store apps next year, in its effort to comply with the incoming strict European Union requirements.
Software engineering and services employees are currently involved in "a major push to open up key elements of Apple’s platforms," Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. This push involves changes related to enabling customers to download third-party software to their iPhones and iPads without using the App Store.
Per the report, Apple's goal is to have all the planned changes ready and be made part of an update to next year’s iOS 17.
This is a major shift to its business and long-held policies. For users, it would also mean avoiding a number of Apple’s restrictions - as well as the (infamous) up-to-30% commission on payments.
This also means that, with the company's ecosystem finally opening up its doors, a larger number of non-fungible-token (NFT)-related apps may be potentially entering.
Just earlier this month, major crypto exchange Coinbase announced that users could no longer transfer NFTs using Coinbase's Wallet app on Apple devices due to the App Store policy. It added that Apple was forcing the exchange to remove the NFT transfer option from its iOS wallet.
The iPhone maker stated that fees for sending NFTs have to be paid through the company's proprietary in-app purchase system, it said – the reason being that Apple aims to collect 30% of the gas fee.
Coinbase also argued that Apple "made it a lot harder" for those who hold an NFT in a wallet on an iPhone to transfer their own NFT to other wallets, or even to send it as a gift to a family member or a friend.
As for the financial impact on Apple, per Reuters, Angelo
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