Apple plans to allow default third-party browsers, like Chrome, Edge, and Brave, and web engines in the EU with iOS 17.4, prompting Safari users on first launch
https://www.theverge.com/... Alessio Maffeis / @maffeis@mastodon.social : You might not like it, but #WebKit-only iOS is the only thing keeping Google from having complete control over the Web. — It's counterintuitive and wrong in principle, but advocating for multiple engines on iOS is going to result in less choice and a serious blow to the “Open Web”. … X: @dylanmcd8 : “just don't use it” Well, that's not really how it works. Many social media apps like Instagram have their own in-app browser, which now no longer has to be WebKit. Additionally, many apps out there are largely just web wrappers. If one uses Chrome, it's gonna tank your battery. @openwebadvocacy : The #AppleBrowserBan Ends in the EU! 🇪🇺 After 3 years of campaigning by @OpenWebAdvocacy and in a victory for developers and consumers, Apple will no longer ban third party browsers in the EU. We will fight until we have won in every jurisdiction! Your Browser, Your Choice! @openwebadvocacy : @TimSweeneyEpic It is critical to fair competition that such tactics are not allowed. They are a clear violation of the DMA and we need to push to have them banned. [image] Tim Sweeney / @timsweeneyepic : This is a victory for Google, who's on the right side of history in fighting Apple's browser ban, while being on the wrong side of history with Google Play Store's anticompetitive practices. If Google got entirely on the right side, they'd be a formidable force for good. Tim Sweeney / @timsweeneyepic : @OpenWebAdvocacy The end of the browser ban in Europe, the beginning of the fight over anticompetitive Apple scare screens to make it impossible for competing browser engines to succeed. David Barnard / @drbarnard : That was mean of Apple to specifically call out Chrome like that... “In addition, apps that use alternative browser engines — other than Apple's WebKit — may negatively affect the user experience, including impacts to system performance and battery life.” @diekus : boom. https://www.theverge.com/... Europe delivers. Still not ideal but a step in the right direction. Maximiliano Firtman / @firt : As far as I understand, Chrome and Firefox should create new apps with alternative names probably for the European market, only using the Apple API and complying with several unpublished technical requirements. They can't just update their current apps with their engines. Emilia Zapata / @synecdokey : I think this is great news, and terrible news. Giving users choice is great, but chrome's hegemony was already pretty bad, and this is just going to put the nail in the coffin. Bruce Lawson / @brucel : @synecdokey WebKit runs on ios, android, Linux, mac and windows. Once, Safari ran on Windows too, until Apple killed it. Apple could make a great cross-platform Safari to compete against Chrome. They have the money, the marketing, and brand loyalty. If they want to. https://brucelawson.co.uk/... @ericvicenti : @cramforce So who is willing to develop a new mobile browser engine that will only work in the EU? Apple hopes: nobody Malte Ubl / @cramforce : The web changed today. Alternative browser engines on iOS https://developer.apple.com/ ... [image] Malte Ubl / @cramforce : @EricVicenti Nobody will develop a new mobile browser engine. There already are two that are mobile optimized and work great on Apple Silicon and Apple-flavor OSes Dare Obasanjo / @carnage4life : There are also a number of changes on the iOS browser front. Apple will prompt users to choose a default browser including choices like Chrome, Firefox & Opera. Apple will now allow alternate browser engines in the EU. Now Firefox or Chrome won't just be different UI on Safari. Dare Obasanjo / @carnage4life : Apple has provided a calculator to compare how much developers will pay post-DMA rules and it's wild. If you have 10 million users and make $1 per user per year with IAPs, you will average $250K a month in payments to Apple today. In the post-DMA world, it's $574K. 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯 [image] Mishaal Rahman / @mishaalrahman : With this announcement, Chrome and FireFox could finally switch away from using WebKit on iOS (Google's already been working on porting Blink to iOS), which could be a big deal for the mobile web. Thank you, EU. @dylanmcd8 : This is probably the worst part of this. Chrome is terrible, and developers are going to use it for no good reason. Prepare for iPhone battery life to plummet. LinkedIn: Bruce Lawson : Well, we won: In iOS 17.4, Apple is opening up its system to other browser engines, which means browsers will get better fast. … Justin Willis : Some HUGE things going on today for the web. — First, alternative browser engines can now be run on iOS in the EU https://lnkd.in/... . What does this mean? … Forums: r/programming : Apple is bringing alternate web engines to the iPhone (along with side-loading), but for the EU only.
The change sits alongside Apple’s EU-specific app-distribution adjustments, making the browser stack a central test of how far platform access can be opened without creating a separate global iOS model.
First-order effects
EU iPhone users gain a first-launch default-browser choice, while Chrome, Edge, Brave and other browser providers can compete for that default position rather than relying solely on Safari.
Browser makers can pursue iOS versions using their own web engines in the EU, ending WebKit as the required rendering foundation for those offerings.
Second-order effects
Browser vendors must decide whether the EU opportunity justifies maintaining separate iOS engine builds, testing, security processes and feature roadmaps.
The choice prompt makes default placement a more contestable distribution channel, increasing pressure on Safari to compete on product quality rather than platform preinstallation.
Third-order effects
If alternative engines gain meaningful adoption, iOS web development may become less dependent on a single engine’s implementation choices, though EU-only availability could also add platform fragmentation.
The move strengthens the precedent that gatekeeper rules can reach technical platform defaults and underlying runtime constraints, not just app-store terms.
The trend: EU digital-market rules are shifting competition policy from access to storefronts toward control over the technical defaults and engines that determine user choice.
This is, of course, the pettiest way that Apple could have possibly complied with the EUs orders while still insisting that only they know what's best for their users. Which is why it's completely unsurprising. — https://www.theverge.com/...
You might not like it, but #WebKit-only iOS is the only thing keeping Google from having complete control over the Web. — It's counterintuitive and wrong in principle, but advocating for multiple engines on iOS is going to result in less choice and a serious blow to the “Open W…
There are also a number of changes on the iOS browser front. Apple will prompt users to choose a default browser including choices like Chrome, Firefox & Opera. Apple will now allow alternate browser engines in the EU. Now Firefox or Chrome won't just be different UI on Safari.
I think this is great news, and terrible news. Giving users choice is great, but chrome's hegemony was already pretty bad, and this is just going to put the nail in the coffin.
@TimSweeneyEpic It is critical to fair competition that such tactics are not allowed. They are a clear violation of the DMA and we need to push to have them banned. [image]
Apple has provided a calculator to compare how much developers will pay post-DMA rules and it's wild. If you have 10 million users and make $1 per user per year with IAPs, you will average $250K a month in payments to Apple today. In the post-DMA world, it's $574K. 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯 [image]
@EricVicenti Nobody will develop a new mobile browser engine. There already are two that are mobile optimized and work great on Apple Silicon and Apple-flavor OSes
As far as I understand, Chrome and Firefox should create new apps with alternative names probably for the European market, only using the Apple API and complying with several unpublished technical requirements. They can't just update their current apps with their engines.
@synecdokey WebKit runs on ios, android, Linux, mac and windows. Once, Safari ran on Windows too, until Apple killed it. Apple could make a great cross-platform Safari to compete against Chrome. They have the money, the marketing, and brand loyalty. If they want to. https://bruce…
This is a victory for Google, who's on the right side of history in fighting Apple's browser ban, while being on the wrong side of history with Google Play Store's anticompetitive practices. If Google got entirely on the right side, they'd be a formidable force for good.
“just don't use it” Well, that's not really how it works. Many social media apps like Instagram have their own in-app browser, which now no longer has to be WebKit. Additionally, many apps out there are largely just web wrappers. If one uses Chrome, it's gonna tank your battery.
The #AppleBrowserBan Ends in the EU! 🇪🇺 After 3 years of campaigning by @OpenWebAdvocacy and in a victory for developers and consumers, Apple will no longer ban third party browsers in the EU. We will fight until we have won in every jurisdiction! Your Browser, Your Choice!
@OpenWebAdvocacy The end of the browser ban in Europe, the beginning of the fight over anticompetitive Apple scare screens to make it impossible for competing browser engines to succeed.
That was mean of Apple to specifically call out Chrome like that... “In addition, apps that use alternative browser engines — other than Apple's WebKit — may negatively affect the user experience, including impacts to system performance and battery life.”
With this announcement, Chrome and FireFox could finally switch away from using WebKit on iOS (Google's already been working on porting Blink to iOS), which could be a big deal for the mobile web. Thank you, EU.
This is probably the worst part of this. Chrome is terrible, and developers are going to use it for no good reason. Prepare for iPhone battery life to plummet.
In Europe, Apple has introduced a new app commission structure that reduces rate to 10%/17% for apps in the App Store, plus 3% if apps use In-App Purchase, plus a per-install fee for ‘high volume’ apps. https://9to5mac.com/...
Only in the EU... for now... “Apps distributed through the App Store will pay a 17 percent commission (rather than 30 percent) on digital goods and services. This commission rate falls to 10 percent for any apps that currently qualify for Apple's reduced “small business” rate.”..…
Apple's calculator helps, but modeling what's best for a specific business is going to involve some assumptions that don't yet have any benchmarks for comparison. If I'm thinking about this correctly, the only clear winners here are developers who are in the small developer prog…
My initial take that this all seemed reasonable (after reading Apple's carefully worded statement) is eroding. My new hot take: Apple pulled an EU on the EU. The devil is in all the red tape. Any one rule seems reasonable, but combined the juice probably isn't worth the squeeze
This will be more costly for developers than Apple charging 27% for IAP sales outside of the App Store. With that model, developers would likely end up breaking even after paying the 2.99% fee to Stripe/etc. With the post-DMA model, developer costs will increase in many cases.
From what I can tell, though, it looks like the path for @FortniteGame's return to European gamers has been paved, though? As long as it's distributed through the coming Steam or Microsoft or maybe even Epic game stores. Apple will only scan for malware, not biz model compliance.
Huge new changes from Apple in EU after widespread criticism: • 17% commissions in Y1, 10% in Y2, plus €0.50 per install over 1MM, irrespective of app store used • 3% fee for using Apple IAP • Rival browser engines will be allowed • Still warns new options risky for users
But developers can move to a new stucture if they want. - 30pc fee drops to 17pc (10pc for SMEs) - 3pc processing fee if you use apple payment service - new 0.50 euro fee for an app download if your app is mega-popular (over 1m) /3