Setapp Mobile, one of the first alt iOS app stores launched in 2024 after the EU's DMA, plans to shut down, blaming “still-evolving and complex business terms”
This was expected. Apple's fluctuating terms and junk fees in different regions can't make any alternative marketplace sustainable. Setapp was one of the first alternative marketplaces in the EU. Their approach is solid and clever. It's disappointing to see them go. [image]
Unfortunately this was to be expected. It's by design. The market is limited to certain regions, with no ability for even power users to opt into it. Developers can't test their own app if they aren't in the region. Fees still eat into already tight margins. You can't build …
Clear indicator that Apple's DMA implementation never actually met its obligations under the DMA in the first place. Apple scared developers away from ever signing up to their poison pill Core Technology Fee terms, so alternative app stores simply have no apps to offer. …