American technology Company Apple has announced some fundamental changes to the way its iPhone and its apps work for the first time since launching.
The company says that its customers for the first time from other sources Apps will be able to download, as well as developers will be able to add new ways to pay for goods within these apps.
This marks a major change in Apple’s control of iOS, the operating system that runs the iPhone.
For example, the new changes mean that another company may offer a competing marketplace for apps. These apps may contain content that may otherwise be prohibited by Apple, such as nudity.
In effect, the changes mean iPhone users can download a rival app market that will give them access to apps Apple doesn’t provide and pay for services using such a system for the first time. will not be controlled by Apple.
iPhone users will also be able to download game streaming services such as Xbox Cloud Gaming which were previously restricted.
While most of the new rules only apply to people in the European Union, the changes to the games will apply everywhere.
Apple has been forced to make these changes in response to the EU’s Digital Markets Act. He has long campaigned against the new rules, and said when he announced the changes that they posed ‘many risks’ to people in the EU.
The company has always said that only allowing apps from its App Store keeps iPhones safe, because it means malware and other threats can’t install themselves on users’ phones.
It’s made the same argument about its payment services: Currently, apps can only be on Apple’s platform, which the company says will certainly protect users from fraud.
Apple said in its announcement that forcing the company to add new options for payments and download apps ‘opens up new avenues for malware, fraud, illegal and harmful content, and other privacy and security risks. will.’
This section contains related reference points (Related Nodes field).
Steps have been taken to counter these threats, he said, but despite them, “many threats remain.”
Supporters of the new law have argued that the rules simply give them more options — and that consumers can use the existing App Store and other technologies if they’re satisfied with Apple’s arguments about security.
But Apple has said that consumers may be forced to use other markets for the apps they need.
Ivan Kristich, Apple’s head of security engineering and architecture, told The Independent late last year: ‘In this case, these users have no choice but to take software from their trusted distribution mechanisms.
‘So, it’s not really the case that users will use the option they have today to get all their software from the App Store.’
Developers can now start using the new tools with the release of iOS 17.4 beta and supporting software and documentation. After iOS 17.4 is fully released in March, the changes will come to users in the 27 countries of the European Union, but not in the UK.
The EU’s Digital Markets Act came into effect last year, while companies have until March 6 to comply. It aims to limit the power of big technology companies, which politicians say will help promote competition on the continent.
It focuses on the biggest companies – Apple, including Alphabet, Amazon, ByteDance, Meta and Microsoft – and their 22 products described as ‘core platform services’. This includes iOS, the Safari browser and the App Store.
For Apple, it is important not to prioritize its own services and highlight the services of others.
So it has to allow users to download apps outside of its own app store, for example offer them to use other browsers, and offer alternative payment plans.
For developers, the changes come with new ‘business terms’, which also change the commission that Apple used to get from selling apps. It said more than 99 percent of developers would pay the same fee or less under the new plans.
While most of the new changes are limited to the European Union, Apple has also announced some global changes to the way games are distributed. Apple will now allow game streaming—so developers can come up with an app that lets players stream all the games in the catalog.
Apple has previously banned services such as Microsoft’s Xbox Cloud Gaming app, arguing that it is insecure because it cannot check every game available through it.
The company says the changes are made to ‘reflect feedback from Apple’s developer community’.
Join Independent Urdu’s WhatsApp channel for authentic news and current affairs analysis Click here.
#Dramatic #iPhone #Apple #App #Store
2024-08-14 03:52:47
