PG: Apple lets first porn app on iPhones in the EU
If you want porn apps, switch to Android, Steve Jobs once said. Now iPhone users in the EU can find the first such app in the AltStore.
(Image: WDnet Creation/Shutterstock.com)
Apple has approved the first porn app for distribution on iPhones in the EU. The software, called "Hot Tub", can be downloaded via "AltStore PAL", as Riley Testut, the provider of the alternative app marketplace, announced on Monday. It is the "world's first Apple-approved porn app", Testut emphasized. The iPhone turns 18 this year and is therefore "finally old enough for more mature apps".
In a statement, Apple expressed concern "about the safety risks that hardcore porn apps of this type create for EU users, especially kids. [...] Contrary to the false statements made by the marketplace developer, we certainly do not approve of this app and would never offer it in our App Store. The truth is that we are required by the European Commission to allow it to be distributed by marketplace operators like AltStore and Epic who may not share our concerns for user safety", Apple emphasized.
In response, AltStore provider Testut published a screenshot of an email from Apple's app review team, stating that the app had been "approved for distribution."
All apps must be submitted to Apple
Hot Tub markets itself as an ad-free alternative to pornographic websites and offers access to videos hosted on Pornhub and other relevant providers. The focus is on filter and search functions as well as warnings if a Bluetooth speaker is connected to the iPhone, for example. There do not appear to be any age restrictions or other youth protection functions.
The EU Digital Markets Act stipulates that companies classified as gatekeepers, such as Apple, must offer alternative app stores on their major platforms. Since iOS 17.4, it has therefore been officially possible for the first time to download apps to the iPhone from sources other than Apple's App Store. Apple must now also allow alternative app stores and sideloading on iPads, which is the case from iPadOS 18 onwards. Users must be located within one of the EU member states and use an Apple account that is assigned to an EU country – such as Germany –.
Apple checks all apps that are distributed via alternative app stores and sideloading in the EU – both automatically and with human reviewers. The company has also already blocked unwanted emulators. However, there is no explicit ban on pornography for alternative distribution channels in the EU; Apple is not actually allowed to intervene in terms of content outside the App Store.
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Pornography not allowed in the App Store
Apple has always prohibited pornographic and "overtly sexual" content in its own store. The company defines this as "explicit descriptions or depictions of sexual organs or activities that are intended to stimulate erotic rather than aesthetic or emotional sensations". In 2010, Apple founder Steve Jobs responded to a customer's complaint by saying that the company had a "moral responsibility" to keep pornography off the iPhone. "People who want porn can buy an Android".
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