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Apple to release Mac OS X Lion through Mac App Store - sources

With the release of Mac OS X 10.7 Lion this summer, Apple will make the switch to a new kind of digital distribution for its operating system upgrades by releasing the software first through its new Mac App Store, AppleInsider has learned.

AppleInsider Neil Hughes

Context & Ripple Effects

Apple had already seeded a developer preview of Lion in February, and reporting two days ago described an iOS-like uninstall model for Mac App Store apps. The reported store-first Lion release would extend that app-store model from individual software titles to the operating-system upgrade itself.

The claim remains unconfirmed, but its syndication by SAI shows the proposed move was being framed as a break from disc-based distribution rather than a routine Lion feature.

First-order effects

  • If accurate, Apple would make the Mac App Store the first channel for Lion upgrades, placing download, discovery and installation inside a service it operates.
  • Mac users seeking the initial Lion release would need to obtain the upgrade through Apple’s storefront rather than lead with physical media.

Second-order effects

  • A store-first operating-system release gives Apple a stronger reason to align Mac software purchasing and lifecycle management with the iOS-style app experience already signaled by Lion’s uninstall changes.
  • Retail and disc-oriented software distribution lose prominence in the upgrade path, while the Mac App Store becomes a more consequential access point for developers and customers.

Third-order effects

  • If Apple repeats the model for major Mac releases, control over the operating-system upgrade channel shifts from packaged distribution toward a platform gatekeeper that owns the storefront and installation path.
  • The larger pattern is Apple applying its iOS distribution model to the Mac, potentially making storefront control a central lever in desktop software economics.

The trend: Apple is converging Mac software distribution with its app-store model, concentrating the upgrade path in a managed digital channel.

Related: Access-layer power · Apple · Apple Releases Developer Preview of Mac OS X Lion · Mac OS X Lion to Bring iOS-Like Uninstall Process for Mac App Store Apps

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