Following the European Union’s decision to break Apple’s app store monopoly for iPhone and iPad users, Apple has found a way to reduce access to third-party app stores. If you are in the European Union, Apple is required by law to allow you to access third-party app stores.
However, if you leave the European Union for too long, you will be blocked from accessing third-party app stores (and updates from those app stores). This applies to users who live in the European Union.
Apple is only allowing access to alternate app stores to EU residents to comply with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which means the rest of the world is still restricted to using only Apple’s app store.
Apple says that the location data used to check if you are still in the EU will remain on your device to preserve your privacy. They also say that you are at increased risk of malware, having your privacy violated, lower content moderation standards, among other things if you use alternate app stores.
While it is clear that Apple collects significant profits from its 15% to 30% app store commission that it takes from each app’s revenue — Apple’s app store moderation is better than average — making it one of the safest app stores for mobile phones. Competition from other app stores should help to keep Apple on its toes and maintain a high moderation standard in its own app store.
