Tag: Safari

EU commission decided to designate iPadOS as 'gatekeeper' according to Digital Millennium Act. Despite not passing the thresholds required for designation, commission decided that iPadOS has significant business impact and therefore should be considered as gatekeeper.

On 5 September 2023, the Commission designated Apple as a gatekeeper for its operating system iOS, its browser Safari and its App Store. On the same day, the Commission opened a market investigation to assess whether Apple’s iPadOS, despite not meeting the quantitative thresholds laid down in the DMA, constitutes an important gateway for business users to reach end users and therefore should be designated as a gatekeeper.

European Commission, per John Gruber

Apple now has 6 months to comply and implement required changes for iPadOS platform. This might result in default browser settings and non-WebKit browsers support, third-party app marketplaces, web app distribution and additional access to platform features.

Apple did not comment on this ruling yet.

Epic Games now planning to revive Fortnite for iPad in EU.

European Commission: Commission designates Apple's iPadOS under the Digital Markets Act

References and further reading:

• EU will force Apple to add app sideloading, alternative browser engine support to iPad
• iPadOS Identified as Digital 'Gatekeeper' Under New EU Tech Rules
• The EU Pulls iPadOS Into the DMA Fray
• The iPad joins the iPhone in DMA land
• Epic plans to revive Fortnite on iPad following EU iPadOS ‘gatekeeper’ ruling
• Epic Games to Bring Fortnite to iPad in EU After iPadOS 'Gatekeeper' Decision
• European Commission Designates iPadOS a DMA ‘Gatekeeping’ Platform Too

WebKit team explores options on how to implement "mansory" layout using CSS. Layout might require new CSS definitions and team asks developers to provide their opinion on how it should be implemented.

WebKit Blog: Help us invent CSS Grid Level 3, aka “Masonry” layout

Apple's response to Digital Millennium Act in EU contains browser choice screen. This screen seems to be causing more users to use alternative browsers in EU.

This might result in higher diversity of browsers on iPhones.

References:

• More people choose alternative iPhone web browsers when prompted
• Report: DMA’s browser choice requirement benefiting third-party browsers ↦
• Effects of the DMA’s Browser Choice Requirement

Apple releases iOS and iPadOS 17.4. Xcode 15.3 is also released. iOS/iPadOS 15.8.2 and 16.7.6 are also released with security bug fixes.

iOS 17.4 brings alternative marketplace support to EU users, default browser change, alternative browser engines in EU. iOS/iPadOS 17.4 resolve security issues, including those being exploited in the wild.

PWA are working as before despite being disabled in iOS 17.4 beta versions.

Apple adds updates on alternative terms for EU:

• Decisioning by membership: To make it easier for more developers to sign up for the new terms, we’ve removed the corporate entity requirement that the Addendum must be signed by each membership that controls, is controlled by, or is under control with another membership. This means an entity can now choose to sign up for the new terms at the developer account level.
• Switching back: To help reduce the risk of unexpected business changes under the new terms, such as reaching massive scale more quickly than anticipated, or if you simply change your mind, we’ve created a one-time option to terminate the Addendum under certain circumstances and switch back to Apple’s standard business terms for your EU apps. For details, view the Addendum.
• Alternative app marketplace requirements: To make it easier for developers who want to create alternative app marketplaces, we’ve added a new eligibility criteria that lets developers qualify without a stand-by letter of credit. For details, view the marketplace support page.

Apple Developer

Another notable change is that alternative marketplaces are supposed to stop working when traveling outside EU. ScreenTime for kids could be configured to disable alternative marketplaces.

Apple Developer: Updates to app distribution in the European Union

Release notes: Xcode 15.3 Release Notes

References:

• Apple Releases iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4 With EU App Changes, New Emoji, Podcast Transcripts and More
• Apple Releases iOS and iPadOS 17.4 with Major Safari and App Store Changes in the EU, Transcripts for Podcasts, New Emoji, and More
• Apple Tweaks New EU App Store Business Terms After Developer Feedback
• Make Sure to Update: iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4 Fix Two Major Security Vulnerabilities
• iOS 17.4 includes 4 important security fixes, 2 were exploited
• iOS 17.4 lets budgeting apps easily access Apple Card, Cash, and Savings data
• iOS 17.4 Lets Budget Apps Read Real-Time Apple Card Transaction Info
• Apple updates rules surrounding EU DMA compliance to address developer concerns
• Apple revises App Store rules in the EU in response to developer feedback
• iOS 17.4 Features: What's New in iOS 17.4
• iOS 17.4 alternative iPhone app stores will stop working if you travel outside the EU
• Parents can block ‘unsafe’ apps from outside of the App Store from being installed, here’s how

Apple publishes release candidates for iOS and iPadOS 17.4. macOS Sonoma 14.4, watchOS 10.4, tvOS 17.4 get beta 5, visionOS 1.1 gets beta 4. iOS and iPadOS 15.8.2 and 16.7.6 also get release candidates.

Xcode 15.3 RC is also available for download.

visionOS 1.1 will allow to delete most of pre-installed system apps.

It is expected that iOS and iPadOS 17.4 will be released on March 7, 2024 to accommodate changes required by DMA in European Union. It is also expected that other platforms will continue beta testing for some more time.

Apple's decision to drop support for PWA in iOS 17.4 in EU might trigger additional antitrust investigations, but as of now, all PWAs will open as separate tab in user's browser. This will also limit some API capabilities (such as WebPush).

Also, previous iOS 17.4 was showing prompt on app installed through App Store. This prompt warned users on apps installed using it. It is expected that the same prompt will be shown to users of third-party marketplaces in EU. Apple confirmed that apps installation through App Store will not trigger this prompt.

Beta download: Operating Systems

Release notes:

• iOS & iPadOS 17.4 RC Release Notes
• macOS Sonoma 14.4 Beta 5 Release Notes
• watchOS 10.4 Beta 4 Release Notes
• tvOS 17.4 Beta 5 Release Notes
• visionOS 1.1 Beta 4 Release Notes
• Xcode 15.3 RC Release Notes

References and further reading:

• Apple releases first iOS 17.4 RC, here are the official release notes
• Apple Seeds Release Candidate Versions of iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4 to Developers [Update: Public Beta Available]
• Apple Confirms iOS 17.4 Lets Video Calling Apps Turn Off Reactions
• Apple blocking web apps in Europe looks set to lead to antitrust investigation
• Apple's Decision to Disable Web Apps Attracts Scrutiny in EU
• EU officials are not happy with how Apple is handling Progressive Web Apps
• iOS 17.4 adds new prompt in the EU when downloading from the App Store [U]
• iOS 17.4 Beta Adds New App Verification Screen to App Store in EU [Updated]

Apple confirms that due to DMA requirements implementation it will alter the behavior for Progressive Web Apps (PWA) added to iPhone Home Screen. Apps will no longer open in separate instances, and instead will just open in default browser as a separate tab.

This change will only affect users in EU where Digital Markets Act is in effect.

Why don't users in the EU have access to Home Screen web apps?
To comply with the Digital Markets Act, Apple has done an enormous amount of engineering work to add new functionality and capabilities for developers and users in the European Union — including more than 600 new APIs and a wide range of developer tools.
The iOS system has traditionally provided support for Home Screen web apps by building directly on WebKit and its security architecture. That integration means Home Screen web apps are managed to align with the security and privacy model for native apps on iOS, including isolation of storage and enforcement of system prompts to access privacy impacting capabilities on a per-site basis.
Without this type of isolation and enforcement, malicious web apps could read data from other web apps and recapture their permissions to gain access to a user’s camera, microphone or location without a user’s consent. Browsers also could install web apps on the system without a user’s awareness and consent. Addressing the complex security and privacy concerns associated with web apps using alternative browser engines would require building an entirely new integration architecture that does not currently exist in iOS and was not practical to undertake given the other demands of the DMA and the very low user adoption of Home Screen web apps. And so, to comply with the DMA’s requirements, we had to remove the Home Screen web apps feature in the EU.
EU users will be able to continue accessing websites directly from their Home Screen through a bookmark with minimal impact to their functionality. We expect this change to affect a small number of users. Still, we regret any impact this change — that was made as part of the work to comply with the DMA — may have on developers of Home Screen web apps and our users.

Apple Developer Support

Apple Developer Support: Update on apps distributed in the European Union

References:

• Apple Confirms iOS 17.4 Disables Home Screen Web Apps in the European Union
• Apple confirms iOS 17.4 removes Home Screen web apps in the EU, here’s why

Apple Developer portal announces more activities in coming months.

• Join an online session to learn to minimize churn and win back subscribers hosted by App Store experts.
• Celebrate International Women’s Day with special in-person activities in Bengaluru, Cupertino, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, and Tokyo.
• Visit an Apple Vision Pro developer lab in Cupertino, London, Munich, Singapore, Sydney, or Tokyo to test and refine your apps for the infinite canvas.
• Meet with an Apple team member to discuss changes to iOS, Safari, and the App Store impacting apps in the European Union to comply with the Digital Markets Act. 

Apple Developer

Apple Developer:

• Developer activities you’ll love
• Schedule

Yet another great installment of good reads for Apple developers. With quite a lot of really interesting articles.

• Anton Begehr shares hints on how to test schema migrations in SwiftData – Testing SwiftData Migrations;
  
  
• Getting started with Apollo iOS for GraphQL with Swift by Natascha Fadeeva goes through basics of GraphQL in iOS apps;
  
  
• Keith Harrison covers use of system unified logging support in Xcode – Xcode Console and Unified Logging;
  
  
• Wade Tregaskis explores controversial design choice in macOS – Proactive Peek & Reveal on Edge Hover and covers various ways of hiding views in SwiftUI – Hiding SwiftUI views;
  
  
• Discovering Swift Algorithms package by Majid Jabrayilov is dedicated to Swift package for collection algorithms;
  
  
• Antoine van der Lee provides great guide on making your images respecting Dynamic Type scaling – How to use @ScaledMetric in SwiftUI for Dynamic Type support;
  
  
• Giovanni Monaco goes through window management in visionOS – Configuring default window and volume size in visionOS;
  
  
• Understanding Once and For All SwiftUI Alignment Guides by Leonardo Maia Pugliese is a comprehensive review of layout techniques in SwiftUI;
  
  
• Christian Tietze shares his impressions on web site created by Chris Eidhof and the team –  SwiftUI Field Guide;
  
  
• How to determine where tasks and async functions run in Swift? by Donny Wals helps to navigate developers on actual threads running async functions;
  
  
• Chip Loder guides through String Catalogs in Xcode – How to use Xcode String catalogs to localize your app;
  
  
• How to use Media Source Extensions with AirPlay by WebKit team provides hints on how to implement efficient media streaming on the web;
  
  
• Michael Tsai shares several interesting tips and tricks in Swift – Swift Tricks;
  
  
• If you play with Quartz in macOS, you might want to check your settings as per Wade Tregaskis – Secret Sonoma design lead: Barbie;
  
  
• Garrett Barker creates quick overview on new Observation framework – Understanding Observation in Swift: Simplifying SwiftUI Development.

And that's it for this week. See you next Friday with another great pack of interesting articles!

It is reported that iOS 17.4 now has different behavior for PWA in EU, causing web apps to open in the browser instead of headless window.

According to AppleInsider though – apps seem to be still opened with separate window, if properly configured – service workers, manifests, etc.

Behavior of web apps still should be actively tested with iOS 17.4 beta, if targeting EU users.

References:

• iOS 17.4 Nerfs Web Apps in the EU
• iOS 17.4 seems to remove web app support for iPhone users in the EU
• Something is happening to Progressive Web Apps in iOS 17.4 -- but they aren't dead
• iOS 17.4 Changes PWAs to Shortcuts in EU

Apple Vision Pro is now available for purchase and customers already got the devices into their hands. This brings more and more reviews, feedbacks and other materials. Here is quick recap of everything we know so far.

Apple announces that more than 600 apps were created for Vision Pro specifically.

Researchers evaluate how our brains are adjusting to constant use of Vision Pro.

Launch day is being reported too.

You can now reserve an Apple Vision Pro demo in the Apple Store app.

Walkthrough and tutorial videos are shared by Apple on their support channel at YouTube. Also, company defends EyeSight feature as key component.

Apple also sells Developer Strap to provide wired debug capabilities for performance-intensive apps.

It is also reported that Bluetooth mice are not compatible with Vision Pro, only trackpad is an option. Intel Macs could stream their screen at 3K resolution.

There is even first teardown video by iFixit. And first exploit.

If you want to test WebXR on Apple Vision Pro, you'll need to enable some of the Safari feature flags.

Apple Newsroom:

• Apple announces more than 600 new apps built for Apple Vision Pro
• Apple Vision Pro arrives in Apple Store locations across the U.S.

Apple Developer: Developer Strap

References and further reading:

• Your brain may have a hard time adjusting to wearing and taking off Apple Vision Pro
• Apple Vision Pro launch day is here: Follow along
• Apple Vision Pro Demos on Monday and Later Can Be Reserved Online
• Apple Shares Walkthrough Videos for Vision Pro Features and Settings
• Apple Shares New 'First-Timer' Ad for Vision Pro
• Apple Vision Pro sees quiet launch at Apple Downtown Nashville
• Apple Says Vision Pro Syncs Data When Not in Use, Explains Battery Light Charge Indicator
• Apple Explains How to Clean Vision Pro Headset
• Apple design execs explain why EyeSight is a ‘core’ feature of Vision Pro
• Apple Details What to Do If Vision Pro Causes Visual Discomfort, Motion Sickness and More
• What to expect from the Apple Vision Pro in-store demo
• Apple shares tips on Vision Pro battery life, performance, and more
• How to share an Apple Vision Pro with a guest user
• Apple Provides Tips For Making Your Persona Look Better
• These Are the Gestures Used to Control Vision Pro
• Vision Pro Not Fitting Well? Here Are Apple's Tips for Improving It
• What You Need to Know About Traveling With Apple Vision Pro
• Apple Vision Pro Apps to Check Out
• Hands-On With the Apple Vision Pro: Unboxing, Initial Thoughts and More
• Launch Day Apple Vision Pro Apps
• Apple CEO Tim Cook Compares Vision Pro 'Moment' to iPhone and Mac
• Vision Pro Developer Strap Now Available for $300
• Apple says Vision Pro isn’t compatible with Bluetooth mice
• Apple Vision Pro's Virtual Display Feature Works With Intel Macs, But Limited to 3K Resolution
• How to use Mac Virtual Display for Apple Vision Pro with desktop Macs and MacBooks
• Optic ID: Apple Explains Vision Pro's Iris Authentication System
• iFixit Shares Apple Vision Pro Teardown
• Answering a few early Vision Pro questions
• The Apple Vision Pro has already been hacked
• Apple Vision Pro: Everything you can do with the Digital Crown and top button
• How to enable WebXR support on Apple Vision Pro