Android store Aptoide comes to EU iPhones - with in-app purchases
The Google Play alternative Aptoide is targeting iPhones. Games sold in the store rely on direct billed purchases. Apple blocked this for a long time.
Aptoide starts with a more than dubious reference to D-Day on June 6.
Another app store alternative for iPhones is launching in the EU: Aptoide, the provider known for Android, is now also making the app store of the same name available for download for iOS. The website currently states that the launch will not take place until June 6 and that you will have to register on a waiting list, with only limited access at the beginning – however, the app could be installed directly on an iPhone belonging to the Mac & i editorial team.
In contrast to the Android version, only eight games are currently available in the iOS store. Whether apps from other categories will also appear there in the future remains unclear for now. The provider promises that new apps and games will be added every day. "Games of the week" are currently advertised on the homepage, but these cannot be downloaded on iPhones.
Aptoide with its own in-app purchases
Apps downloaded from Aptoide can offer in-app purchases that the provider charges directly – for example, by credit card or PayPal. Until now, Apple has strictly prohibited this; in-app purchases could only be paid for via the iPhone manufacturer's payment interface. Apple's commission is also linked to this. Under pressure from regulators, Apple now allows external links for purchases, but still charges a high commission for such purchases on the web.
Apps distributed via sideloading or on alternative app marketplaces can charge in-app purchases directly for the first time without having to pay commission to Apple. However, a new, equally controversial fee model from the iPhone company applies here, which for the first time charges according to app installations. App marketplaces have to pay Apple 50 cents (per year) for each new installation on an iPhone, as do individual apps as soon as they exceed the 1 million downloads mark.
Still little choice with alternative app stores
Apple has approved the in-house purchase interface, Aptoide emphasized to The Verge. An SDK will be made available to developers. Bonus systems and in-game currencies also appear to be one of the provider's main business models. Aptoide apparently also charges developers a commission or fee for in-app purchases - how high this is remains unclear at this time.
Aptoide is now the fourth alternative app marketplace for iPhones in the EU since the Digital Markets Act came into force at the beginning of March. However, none of them are really freely available: access to AltStore PAL is only available as an annual subscription, Setapp is still in the closed beta phase and Mobivention is only available specifically for corporate customers.
(lbe)