Apple has made a change to its developer communication to clarify its stance on a controversial app following criticism tied to the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
The company's decision to alter three words in an email sent to developers comes after the introduction of a porn app, Hot Tub, which became available for download on iPhones in the European Union through a third-party app store, AltStore PAL.The controversy began when the app appeared on AltStore, prompting misleading headlines suggesting that Apple had approved the app for its platform.
The issue stemmed from the European Union's Digital Markets Act, which mandates that Apple permit third-party app stores on iPhones.
While Apple complied, it aimed to make the process more difficult for users to engage with these alternative stores.Also read: Google brings popular ‘Circle to Search' feature to iPhones: Here's how to use itApple expressed concerns over its ability to keep certain types of apps, including pornography, off its platform.
The company has long maintained a policy of not offering such content in its App Store. However, under the DMA, Apple was required to allow third-party marketplace operators like AltStore and Epic to distribute apps, even if they did not align with Apple's standards for safety and content, according to a report by the 9to5Mac. Also read: Reddit faces global outage: Users struggle to post, profile updates and feed access issuesWhile Apple retains the right to review apps for security and privacy compliance before they are distributed, it was noted that once an app met these criteria, developers received an email indicating that the app was “approved” for release.