The price of grumpiness.
Apple could be in hot water for its decision to end iPhone web apps in the European Union, the Financial Times reports.
The European Commission has asked Apple and app makers for more information to help with the investigation, which is not a good sign.
European Commission spokeswoman Lea Zuber said the Commission is reviewing the rules of all gatekeepers, including Apple.
“We are specifically investigating the issue of web apps and can confirm requests for information have been sent to Apple and app makers, who may provide useful information for our investigation.”
For latecomers, Job’s Mob acted like spoiled brats when the EU told them they couldn’t beat up web developers and steal their lunch money. Earlier this month, Apple said it would stop supporting iPhone web apps in the EU in iOS 17.4. Instead of working as separate apps with storage and the ability to send alerts, web apps in the EU will work more like links.
Apple claimed this was due to the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which allows Apple to fully support other browsers – not just Safari’s WebKit.
Apple claimed that adding web app support for other browsers would have required the company to build a “completely new system,” which it says “was impossible to do given the other requirements of the DMA.”
The company also says that “very low user usage” and possible security risks are reasons for the change.
Apple has traditionally argued that anything it doesn’t want to do is a security risk even though it usually means a financial risk.
App makers are fighting back on the web app end. Open Web Advocacy, a nonprofit group that supports the open web, examines how the change will affect manufacturers. He plans to send the answers to the European Commission.