People in the European Union are now allowed to access alternative app stores thanks to the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a regulation designed to foster increased competition in the app ecosystem. Like Apple’s App Store, alternative app marketplaces allow for easy access to a wider world of apps, but instead of the apps going through Apple’s App Review process, the apps on these third-party marketplaces have to go through a notarization process to ensure they meet some “baseline platform integrity standards,” Apple says — like being malware-free. However, each store can review and approve apps according to its own policies. The stores are also responsible for any matters relating to support and refunds, not Apple.
To run an alternative app marketplace, developers must accept Apple’s alternative business terms for DMA-compliant apps in the EU. This includes paying a new Core Technology Fee of €0.50 for each first annual install of their marketplace app, even before the threshold of 1 million installs is met, which is the bar for other EU apps distributed under Apple’s DMA business terms.
Despite the complicated new rules, a handful of developers have taken advantage of the opportunity to distribute their apps outside of Apple’s walls.
Below is a list of the alternative app stores iPhone users in the EU can try today.
AltStore PAL
Co-created by developer Riley Testut, maker of the Nintendo game emulator app Delta, the AltStore PAL is an officially approved alternative app marketplace in the EU. The open source app store will allow independent developers to distribute their apps alongside the apps from AltStore’s makers, Delta, and a clipboard manager, called Clip.
Unlike Apple’s App Store, AltStore apps are self-hosted by the developer. To work, developers download an alternative distribution packet (ADP) and upload it to their server, then create a “source” that users will add to the AltStore to access their apps. That means the only apps you’ll see in the AltStore are those you’ve added yourselves.
Some popular apps that users are adding include the virtual machine app UTM, which lets you run Windows and other software on iOS or iPad; OldOS, a re-creation of iOS 4 that’s built in SwiftUI; Kotoba, the iOS dictionary available as a stand-alone app; torrenting app iTorrent; qBittorrent remote client for iOS devices called qBitControl; and social discovery platform PeopleDrop.
Setapp Mobile
MacPaw’s Setapp became one of the first companies to agree to Apple’s new DMA business terms to set up an alternative app store for EU users. The company has long offered a subscription-based service featuring a selection of curated apps for customers on iOS and Mac. Following the implementation of the DMA, it released Setapp Mobile, an alternative app store for iOS users only in the EU. Similar to its other subscription offerings, the new app store includes dozens of apps under a single recurring subscription price, and the number of apps grows over time. The apps are free from in-app purchases or ads and are generally considered high quality; however, it doesn’t include big-name apps like Facebook, Uber, Netflix and others.
Setapp Mobile is available to users on the “Power User” and “AI Expert” Setapp subscription plans for free. Otherwise, users can sign up via a new “iOS Advanced” plan that includes both the iOS app from Setapp’s main subscription and Setapp Mobile at $9.99/€9.49 monthly or $107.88/€102.48 yearly.
In addition, all Setapp subscribers (except for “Family” and “Teams”) can try Setapp Mobile for free during the invite-only beta period.
Epic Games Store
Fortnite maker Epic Games launched its alternative iOS app store in the EU on August 16, allowing users to download games, including its own Fortnite and others like Rocket League Sideswipe and Fall Guys, with more to come. The company said it’s also bringing its games to other alternative app stores, including AltStore PAL, which it’s now supporting via a grant, as well as Aptoide’s iOS store in the EU and ONE Store on Android.
The move to launch Fortnite in the alternative iOS marketplace comes more than four years after Apple removed the game from its App Store over policy violations, ahead of Epic’s legal challenge to the alleged App Store monopoly. While U.S. courts decided that Apple was not engaged in antitrust behavior, the lawsuit did pave the way for developers to link to their own websites for a reduced commission.
Aptoide
An alternative game store for iPhone, Lisbon-based Aptoide is an open source solution for app distribution. The company, already known for its Google Play alternative, says it scans the apps to ensure they are safe to download and install.
The iOS version of the Aptoide store launched as an invite-only beta in June, so you’ll need to put your email on a waitlist to get the access code. As a free-to-use store, Aptoide doesn’t charge its users to cover its Core Technology Fee paid to Apple, but takes a 10% to 20% commission on in-app purchases on iOS, depending on whether they were generated by the marketplace or not.
Across all platforms, including Android, web, car and TV, Aptoide offers 1 million apps to its over 430 million users.
Mobivention marketplace
A B2B-focused app store, the Mobivention marketplace allows EU companies to distribute their internal apps that are used by employees, but can’t — or shouldn’t — be published in Apple’s App Store. The company also offers the development of a customized app marketplace for companies that want to offer employees their own app store just for their corporate apps. Larger companies can even license Mobivention’s technology to more deeply customize the app marketplace to their own needs.
Skich
In March, Skich announced the launch of an alternative app store for EU users which differentiates itself by offering a Tinder-like interface for app discovery. That is, users swipe right to “match” with apps they might enjoy. They can also create playlists and see what apps their friends are playing. The new store will replace Skich’s existing app and will see the company taking a 15% commission on all purchases. The store has not yet filled with apps, however. Instead, it will market the offering to developers at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) and hopes to add titles later in March.
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