of the European Union Digital Markets Act (DMA) is officially in action and the results are coming out left and right. The latest development comes from Apple DMA Compliance Report describes the changes required of them. These include immediate and future steps such as presenting a browser selection screen.
Before we jump into Apple’s changes, here’s some quick background: The Digital Marketplaces Act defines “goalkeepers” Apple, like Meta and Amazon, is based on profits and users. The law prohibits these companies from favoring their platforms or forcing users to stay in their ecosystems. Accordingly — when Apple users in the EU are open Safari, they will be prompted to select a default browser from a list of options available in their region. Developers can also choose from different browsers – although they must request and obtain different “rights”. These updates will be reflected for everyone who has downloaded iOS 17.4.
Apple is also taking steps to make its data more portable to outside systems, meaning an iOS user can import their data to an Android phone. “Apple is developing a solution that helps mobile operating system providers develop more convenient solutions for transferring data from an iPhone to a non-Apple phone,” the statement said. “Apple is also creating a browser switching solution for exporting and importing relevant browser data to and from another browser on the same device.” Changes to the mobile operating system should take effect by fall 2025, while Apple aims to launch browser transitions in late 2024 or early 2025.
Throughout the Compliance Report, Apple discloses ways the company believes these changes could harm users and developers. Apple says these risks include “new avenues for malware, fraud and spoofing, illegal and harmful content, and other privacy and security threats. These changes also improve Apple’s ability to detect, prevent, and counter malware in iOS.” also jeopardizes the ability to take action and support users. Issues with apps downloaded outside of the App Store are affected.” The company presented the following steps Notarization for iOS applicationsbut claims that they will not be fully effective.
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