Apple is removing limitations from the App Store and allowing retro gaming emulators to be available on the platform. Apple revealed in a Friday update that downloadable games for game emulators are now available on the App Store worldwide. However, Apple states that those games must abide with “all applicable laws,” suggesting that it will prohibit apps that offer pirated games.
With this change, the remaining Android retro console emulators should be able to port their apps to the iPhone. Since iOS has long prohibited game emulators, owners of iPhones have been looking for various ways to get around the ban, such as jailbreak their device. Now that third-party app stores are legal in the EU, they’re also one of the main reasons why iPhone owners there may want to check them out. Apple’s latest move may prevent that.
Apple amended its regulations on super apps, like WeChat, in addition to the new limits regarding emulators. It now makes it clear that the mini-games and mini-apps inside of these apps cannot be native apps or games; instead, they must use HTML5.
Apple appears to be giving in to pressure from the European Commission outside of the US. The business announced today that it will now permit in-app links pointing users toward outside purchases and mentioning pricing information in music streaming apps within the European Union. This is part of another regulatory update. In order to provide consumers a link to the developer’s website where they can buy digital music content or services, developers will now be able to “invite users to provide their email address.”
After the Commission declared Apple’s anti-steering regulations to be “illegal,” Spotify tried to alter its app to include connections to its website for membership purchases, but Apple took weeks to approve the update. Spotify is still not satisfied with Apple’s most recent move, though, as Apple continues to intend to impose a commission on sales made through external connections, even though EU Commissioner Margrethe Vestager has stated that Apple must permit “free” communication between users and music streaming apps.
According to Spotify spokesperson Jeanne Moran, “Following the law is not optional, but Apple continues to defy that decision,” “Effective April 6th, the Commission can start noncompliance proceedings and impose daily fines. It’s time for decisive action to once and for all give consumers real choice.”
