The Mac App Store, hindered by stringent requirements and lack of features like TestFlight, appears forgotten by Apple
The Mac App Store: Not gone, but certainly forgotten — Mac developers have been frustrated with many limitations of the store for years, and it certainly doesn't seem …
Context & Ripple Effects
This Macworld piece lands three days after The Verge reported that the App Store's low prices, missing trials, and refund gaps were already making small developers hesitant to build professional-grade iPad Pro software (App Store limitations deterring professional apps) — the same complaints now documented on the Mac side, where the added absence of TestFlight leaves beta testing without an integrated path.
The neglect claim also fits a pattern the coverage traces inside Apple: a year later, Bloomberg would report that the Mac is receiving far less internal attention than it once did, amid unclear direction from senior management and key departures.
First-order effects
- Mac developers shipping through the store absorb stricter requirements than their iOS peers while losing tools like TestFlight, pushing professional apps toward direct distribution or out of the Mac entirely.
- Buyers of compute-intensive Mac software find fewer pro-grade titles in the store, reinforcing the perception that Apple's storefront is built for consumer apps rather than professional work.
Second-order effects
- Apple's iOS-first developer pitch weakens: if the same storefront limitations that deterred iPad Pro development (no free trials, low prices, thin refunds) persist across platforms, developers rationally prioritize whichever platform Apple demonstrably invests in.
- Third-party distribution channels and direct sales gain relative appeal for Mac software, shifting discovery and pricing power away from Apple's storefront.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, Apple's platforms split into a well-resourced iOS ecosystem and a maintenance-mode Mac ecosystem — a structure later echoed by reports of the Mac's diminished internal standing — raising the risk that pro-software credibility, once lost, does not return cheaply.
- Developer cynicism about Apple's stated platform benefits compounds: critiques like DHH's argument that App Store security claims seed distrust suggest storefront neglect becomes a trust problem, not just a feature gap.
The trend: Apple's storefronts are drifting toward consumer-scale commerce while professional developers migrate to direct distribution, widening the gap between Apple's stated developer value proposition and what its stores actually deliver.