Court orders Apple to allow 3rd-party app stores in Australia
Big news for users whose Apple Account region is set to Australia: Starting March 1, 2027, at noon Melbourne time, Apple has to let third-party app stores run on iPhones.
This comes after a court ruled that Apple was unfairly limiting how people could download and pay for apps.
Soon, you'll be able to grab apps from other marketplaces: no more App Store-only rules.
Apple must cap in-app fees
Developers enrolled in the Apple Developer Program worldwide can offer their apps outside the App Store using official tools, and Apple can't punish them for it starting March 1, 2027 at noon Melbourne time.
The company also has to limit its in-app purchase fees and can't charge extra if you use different payment methods.
Security checks will still apply for non-App Store apps, though.
Apple isn't happy about the ruling and plans to appeal, so there might be some delays before all these changes kick in.