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Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

techcrunch.com

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Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#51

Post by tonoto »

brikym wrote: post #30

I'm actually thinking of switching back to Android because of this bullshit. There are a lot of niche web apps I use, particularly for local things, that just won't be developed into an iOS app because it's not viable.

Android user since ~2010 (before that, Symbian).. I tried one of Apple's "Pro" phones with IOS 2021, last year I went back to Android and back to freedom even if it is Google's walled garden. Still, being able to control many aspects of the phone (choice of browser, do I need to mention different volume controls, can compile own stuff, automation) is unbeatable. To me using iPhone left me with the same crippled feeling that I would have if someone forced me to use Windows on a computer. On the plus side, my screen time was actually lower during those two years..

Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#52

Post by jkestner »

akmarinov wrote: post #23
addicted wrote: post #5

I don’t think Apple’s pettiness is gonna work in their favor. I am not in the EU but my next iPhone is almost certainly not gonna be an iPhone despite me having used a non iPhone for about 6 months in the last 15 years. Their throwing their customers under the bus just to throw a tantrum in the EU does not bode well for how they would treat their customers in other situations.

Whatever they manage to eek out in the EU, is the future of what iOS will be in the US and worldwide eventually. If they go with fully fledged PWAs that the other browser engines will enable - there’s little reason to use the Appstore, hence Apple losing their 30% commission. From their perspective it’s not so much throwing a tantrum but clawing and screaming their way into giving up as little revenue as possible.

And as a developer, I see how I'm going to be collateral damage, and am less likely to do anything that gives Apple more power over me and my customers. If that means a bookmarked web app, so be it.

Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#54

Post by deminature »

SllX wrote: post #46
deminature wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not a fan of PWAs either, but disabling them instead of allowing them to continue to run is an incredibly bad faith response to the DMA.

Not if the alternative is allowing other browsers to install them without a privacy and security architecture in place first. Even if Apple thinks it’s worth doing, that takes time, and web developers aren’t worth prioritizing for them when they have a lot of other ground to cover building out a new system of APIs and entitlements to comply with the DMA’s other requirements.

The user is warned already on the App Store that installing apps from third-parties comes with certain risks via 'scare screens'. There's no reason they can't do the same for PWAs.

Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#55

Post by ivan_gammel »

Very questionable argumentation. This can be seen from two different angles:

1. PWA is a native wrapper for a web application, not a browser. It is supposed to be limited to the app website. DMA does not tell Apple that every app with embedded WebView should offer users possibility to switch the engine. Why PWA should be treated differently here? I‘d rather clarify this with regulators first, before harming end users.

2. There’s no browser engines currently supporting PWA on Apple mobile devices. Apple has enough resources and time to figure out how to sandbox PWAs on other engines together with the first browser vendor that decides to offer such support and commit engineering resources to this project. In the meantime current solution could stay simply because it does not hinder any competition.

I’m not a legal expert, so maybe I miss something here. But Apple statement does not look convincing to me.

Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#56

Post by stephc_int13 »

LeoPanthera wrote: post #7

Since the article doesn't actually repeat what Apple has said, here's what Apple says: == Begin quote == The iOS system has traditionally provided support for Home Screen web apps by building directly on WebKit and its security architecture. That integration means Home Screen web apps are managed to align with the security and privacy model for native apps on iOS, including isolation of storage and enforcement of sys…

The technical justification are bullshit.

They simply could ask browser vendor to follow strict rules, that they can check themselves. This is not like they would have to verify dozens of browsers every day. Only a few per months, top.

Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#57

Post by deminature »

lannisterstark wrote: post #48
kryptiskt wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, this isn't a parlor game, I have no idea why they think the antitrust pressure will abate by such bad faith nonsense moves. Next step for the EU is to make Tim Cook choose whether he wants to be CEO of the device side or service side of the broken up Apple. It's clear that fining them is useless.

Ah yeah man EU is totally gonna break up apple. Some of y'all need to be reminded to be realistic.

The DMA has potential fines of 20% of global annual revenue for non-compliance. Apple is playing with fire here. Laws like GDPR and DMA are designed to be just as scary for big entities as small.

Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#58

Post by wnevets »

LeoPanthera wrote: post #7

Since the article doesn't actually repeat what Apple has said, here's what Apple says: == Begin quote == The iOS system has traditionally provided support for Home Screen web apps by building directly on WebKit and its security architecture. That integration means Home Screen web apps are managed to align with the security and privacy model for native apps on iOS, including isolation of storage and enforcement of sys…

[flagged]

Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#59

Post by agust »

lannisterstark wrote: post #45
jensensbutton wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems like an OS problem. They should fix that.

Or they could just not.

They could develop APIs to support alternate browser engines but could not allow them to install sandboxed web apps on the system? Like all other OSes do, including macOS?

How surprising.

Re: Apple confirms it's breaking iPhone web apps in the EU on purpose

#60

Post by pierrebai »

Come on now, if it was /that other company/ you'd be saying it without a pause.

FUD

See? Not hard to say, even when it is Apple and not Microsoft. The concept that browser allow one web site to read the storage of other sites is ludicrous. SuuuuuUUUuuure Apple can't /guarantee/ that the browser has no bug... which assumes Apple can somehow prove their own browser is bug-free. Plus, what prevents Apple from launching separate instances with separate data permissions for WPA? That's is 99% certainly what they did with their own WebKit-based solution.

FUD FUD FUD

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