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AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

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Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#131

Post by afiori »

nicolas_17 wrote: post #126
troupo wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> why the developer would bother with their own store if the App Store now allows emulators The keyword is now allows emulators. They didn't allow it 3 weeks ago. Or a year ago. Or 10 years ago. Only now , with alternative stores launching and offering this, Apple has finally allowed emulators. Perhaps the developer doesn't want to be beholden to Apple's whims? Especially after investing a lot of effort into setting…

Could you point at what part of the old rules was forbidding emulators?

Technically they were not forbidden, but it was impossible to play copyrighted ROMs.

The rules forbid running arbitrary/user-loaded code and copyright forbids bundling the ROMs people wanted to use.

The new rules have an exception for specifically emulators

Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#132

Post by TheCapeGreek »

kernal wrote: post #52
talldayo wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a sad bit of irony that the year is 2024 and the game console in your pocket could feasibly run anything you want, but the OEM region-locked it again.

Most, if not all, emulators ignore / bypass region locking. I've yet to come across any emulator that strictly enforces it

Emulators using region-specific BIOS files can still have issues though.

Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#133

Post by troupo »

nicolas_17 wrote: post #126
troupo wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> why the developer would bother with their own store if the App Store now allows emulators The keyword is now allows emulators. They didn't allow it 3 weeks ago. Or a year ago. Or 10 years ago. Only now , with alternative stores launching and offering this, Apple has finally allowed emulators. Perhaps the developer doesn't want to be beholden to Apple's whims? Especially after investing a lot of effort into setting…

Could you point at what part of the old rules was forbidding emulators?

Ask the author of this emulator whose app was rejected multiple times in the past six years

Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#134

Post by dgellow »

pretext-1 wrote: post #70

There seems to be an issue with the download. After purchasing it redirects to a download page but when clicking on download nothing happens. Other users on Reddit are reporting this too. Hope it gets fixed or refunded.

Same issue here on an iPhone SE. Also tried on an iPad, where I got a pop up “you can only install this marketplace on an iPhone”, which is disappointing.

Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#135

Post by parski »

tombert wrote: post #118
rwbt wrote: post #7

Love the 'PAL' reference - just like how many in North America were pining for the PAL video standard (initially Europe but later entire world except North America) but we were stuck with NTSC (and doubled down).

Isn't Japan also NTSC as well?

Sure is.

Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#136

Post by parski »

bogwog wrote: post #121
kernal wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not a chance. This is Apple making their users stick with the App Store as their only store.

In other words, another example of competitive pressure forcing a company to actually try and win over consumers.

This is private enterprise squirming as regulators are prying them open.

Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#138

Post by luismedel »

roblabla wrote: post #104
pretext-1 wrote: post #70

There seems to be an issue with the download. After purchasing it redirects to a download page but when clicking on download nothing happens. Other users on Reddit are reporting this too. Hope it gets fixed or refunded.

I had the same problem. I had to long press the download button and open in a new tab for it to do anything. It then showed the popup saying I needed to allow installation of the app in the settings before long-pressing download again.

I'm trying right now from Spain, using an iPhone SE with iOS 17.4.1 and faced the following problems:

- I used Firefox, which can't be used for this. OK, I go to Safari.

- In Safari, I tap the "Download" button and get a message indicating that I can't install because my settings. I only see two options "OK" and "More information", but no details about "which" setting I need to change.

- In the "More information" page, I only read a wall of text that doesn't explain what the fxxx I need to do to in order to perform the install.

- No matter how I try, there's no results in the settings search for "external", "install" or "market".

- Oh, and the "Download" button no longer works after pressing it 2 or 3 times. I suppose this is to "protect me" from evil scammers, of course.

Dark patterns galore.

Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#139

Post by oarsinsync »

nicolas_17 wrote: post #126
troupo wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> why the developer would bother with their own store if the App Store now allows emulators The keyword is now allows emulators. They didn't allow it 3 weeks ago. Or a year ago. Or 10 years ago. Only now , with alternative stores launching and offering this, Apple has finally allowed emulators. Perhaps the developer doesn't want to be beholden to Apple's whims? Especially after investing a lot of effort into setting…

Could you point at what part of the old rules was forbidding emulators?

I can’t point you to rules, but I can point you to news articles talking about the rule change from ~10 days ago:

https://www.macrumors.com/2024/04/05/app-store-guidelines-em...

Re: AltStore PAL, the first alternative app marketplace on iPhone, is available now

#140

Post by oarsinsync »

nerdjon wrote: post #29
realusername wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> So how exactly does this benefit users again and isn't all about appeasing developers? You can blame Apple here, by adding a fee per install, if you choose to go outside the appstore, you pretty much have to remove the free appstore option otherwise why would anybody use the other one? The weird economics Apple has created discourages using both.

Clearly though they are fine with charging a yearly fee to access the store. So why not just charge for the app in the EU IF that really is the problem here. Give users that choice, that is all I am asking for here. Actually give users a choice instead of removing the choice from them. Which at this point in time, that choice is being removed from the user.

> Clearly though they are fine with charging a yearly fee to access the store. So why not just charge for the app in the EU IF that really is the problem here

Alternative app stores have to pay the CTF for every install starting from the very first one. Apps distributed in alternative app stores have to pay the CTF for every install after the first 1m.

The CTF is an annual fee.

In this instance, the app store developer is the same as the app developer, so the yearly fee for the store is being used to cover both sets of fees.

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