AltStore PAL Alternative App Marketplace Launches On iPhone In EU (macrumors.com) 11
AltStore PAL has become one of the first alternative app marketplaces to launch in the European Union. Developed by Riley Testut, AltStore PAL is marketed as an open-source project designed to distribute apps from independent developers. MacRumors reports: At launch, it features two apps, including Testut's Delta game emulator and clipboard manager app Clip. Delta is also being simultaneously released in the App Store outside of the European Union, but it looks like EU customers will need to download it from AltStore. Testut says that once AltStore PAL is "running smoothly," third-party app developers will be able to submit their apps for distribution outside of the App Store. The app marketplace is designed to be decentralized with no directory, so developers will need to self-promote their apps and direct users to their websites to install an app through AltStore.
Distributing apps through AltStore is free of charge, but it is worth noting that apps that see more than one million first annual installs will need to pay Apple an 0.50 euro Core Technology Fee. App marketplaces have to pay the fee for every install with no free allowance, so AltStore is charged 0.50 euros each time it is installed. To afford the fee, Testut is charging 1.50 euros per year for AltStore PAL access. Testut has been working on AltStore PAL since Apple announced plans to support alternative app marketplaces in iOS 17.4. It is open to all apps, but Testut says that it makes the most sense for "smaller, indie apps that otherwise couldn't exist due to App Store rules." AltStore PAL is equipped with Patreon integration to allow developers to monetize their apps. Developers can offer their apps to just their patrons, and this method of distribution also allows for a sub-1 million cap on those who can subscribe to use an app.
Distributing apps through AltStore is free of charge, but it is worth noting that apps that see more than one million first annual installs will need to pay Apple an 0.50 euro Core Technology Fee. App marketplaces have to pay the fee for every install with no free allowance, so AltStore is charged 0.50 euros each time it is installed. To afford the fee, Testut is charging 1.50 euros per year for AltStore PAL access. Testut has been working on AltStore PAL since Apple announced plans to support alternative app marketplaces in iOS 17.4. It is open to all apps, but Testut says that it makes the most sense for "smaller, indie apps that otherwise couldn't exist due to App Store rules." AltStore PAL is equipped with Patreon integration to allow developers to monetize their apps. Developers can offer their apps to just their patrons, and this method of distribution also allows for a sub-1 million cap on those who can subscribe to use an app.
alt stores need to pay per install even under the (Score:3)
alt stores need to pay per install even under the million sounds like something the EU needs to say no to!
Re: (Score:2)
alt stores need to pay per install even under the million sounds like something the EU needs to say no to!
The fee is being passed on to the end users, so ultimately it comes down to how big a stink people make about having to pay 1.50 euros annually to be able to install *checks notes* a classic Nintendo emulator and/or a clipboard manager.
Presumably they'll have additional apps at some point, but I'd figure most developers who are willing to play by Apple's rules are going to still prefer distributing through Apple's official App Store. That obviously was the intended outcome of Apple's malicious compliance i
Android stack (Score:2)
I'm wondering: is it a technical possibility to have the Android API on iPhones? Is it likely to happen ?
The inexistence of one specific niche app on iOS is my main reason not to try these vanity phones for a change.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: Android stack (Score:2)
XCTrack, used by many paragliding pilots as a flight computer, including navigation, and live tracking and upload to XContest flight repository.
On iOS they have FlySkyHy, which doesn't nearly cover half of what XCTrack offers.
Many iPhone users actually have a cheap Android just for Xctrack, but rarely with a SIM, so they don't have the online experience, neither sharing nor receiving.
And both systems are closed source, so a porting will not happen, nor a modding of the *inferior* FlySkyHy
Re: (Score:2)
Android apps on iOS should not be a problem. Android is well abstracted from the underlying hardware and OS. Microsoft was able to add Android app support to Windows, for example.
Many of the APIs will map on to iOS ones, and because of the diverse Android ecosystem apps tend to be reasonably good about handling missing APIs or hardware.
NTSC (Score:2)
I like their business model but wow, the claws EU allowed Apple to have are quite something.
Hopefully businesses can offer different versions of their app to each set of 999,999 customers Especially hobby projects.
Will there be ... (Score:2)
FOSS (Score:2)
So I take truly Free apps like Firefox, the upcoming Thunderbird for mobile (aka K9) or VLC won't be distributed by such stores because they will pass the threshold and get forced to pay?
Nothing is free (Score:2)
Riley Testut is (Score:2)