Apple Web App Store

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Sep 07, 2020.
Browse and download apps to your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch from the App Store. The App Store has more than one million apps and games for your iOS device.

In recent weeks and months, Apple has been catching some heat for its App Store rules, particularly as they apply to gaming apps. Not only has Apple come under fire from Epic for the fact that it takes a 30% cut from each in-app purchase, but the company has also drawn criticism from Facebook and Microsoft, as its App Store policies have made it impossible to get their game streaming apps – Facebook Gaming and Project xCloud, respectively – on iOS devices. Today, Apple updated its App Store guidelines, and while the new rules cover a number of different apps, there are a few specifically for game streaming.

Apple’s updated App Store guidelines can be read in full over on the company’s developer site, but as that spans pages and pages of text, it’s probably easier to look at a changelog for this update that Apple published elsewhere. Apple has implemented new rules regarding App Clips, widgets, extensions and notifications, requiring that those all be related to the content or functionality of the app they belong to. Apple also now requires that “all App Clip features and functionality must be included in the main app binary,” and says that App Clips can’t contain advertising.

Apr 06, 2020. Apple’s App Store requires developers to use Apple’s payment system and pay a 30% commission. Apple blocked Epic’s ability to distribute updates or new apps through the App Store, and Epic.

Apple has also relaxed some rules about in-app purchase requirements for apps that offer person-to-person experiences, which have become much more important in the age of COVID-19. Apple’s new rules say that apps which offer one-on-one services can charge using payment methods other than in-app purchases. Those that offer “one-to-few” and “one-to-many realtime experiences,” however, have to continue using in-app purchases to charge users.

With these changes, Apple is now allowing web-based tools to offer free standalone companion apps without the need for in-app purchases. So, your web provider can give you access to a standalone email app or VOIP app without rolling some kind of in-app purchase into that app. Furthermore, Apple has put in place new rules regarding in-app pop-ups that make you watch ads, request that you review the app, or click on advertisements:

3.2.2(vi): Apps should not require users to rate the app, review the app, watch videos, download other apps, tap on advertisements, enable tracking, or take other similar actions in order to access functionality, content, use the app, or receive monetary or other compensation, including but not limited to gift cards and codes.

Apps offering personal loans are now subject to some rather big restrictions too, with Apple saying that they can’t charge a maximum APR higher than 36% and can’t require that people pay back their loan in full in 60 days or less. The company also says that these apps must “clearly and conspicuously disclose all loan terms, including but not limited to equivalent maximum Annual Percentage Rate (APR) and payment due date.”

Arguably the biggest changes Apple made today apply to game streaming. Facebook has made clear its frustrations with App Store restrictions regarding its Facebook Gaming app, while Microsoft hasn’t been able to bring Project xCloud to iOS because of those same restrictions. Even Google Stadia has bumped up against these guidelines, which means there’s a distinct lack of game streaming present on the iOS App Store.

While these new guidelines are meant to ease game streaming restrictions, we’re not sure how much they’re going to help. Apple’s new rules for game streaming are as follows:

3.1.2(a): Games offered in a streaming game service subscription must be downloaded directly from the App Store, must be designed to avoid duplicate payment by a subscriber, and should not disadvantage non-subscriber customers.

Elsewhere in its changelog, Apple says that “Each streaming game must be submitted to the App Store as an individual app so that it has an App Store product page, appears in charts and search, has user ratings and review, can be managed with ScreenTime and other parental control apps, appears on the user’s device, etc.” Game streaming apps can offer a catalog app separately that points to these App Store listings, but if Microsoft and Stadia were looking to offer one, all-inclusive app that features their entire streaming catalogs, it looks like they won’t be able to do that.

According to Microsoft, Project xCloud will offer 100+ games when it launches as part of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate next week, so in order for Microsoft to publish that app on iOS, it would not only need some kind of mainline Xbox Game Pass app for iOS, but also an individual App Store listing for each of the 100+ games on the service so Apple can review and approve each one. It seems those App Store listings don’t necessarily have to host the full game, but CNBC notes that they’ll need some kind of basic functionality.

It’s hard to imagine Microsoft, Google, or Facebook opting to bring their services to iOS even after these updated guidelines. While Stadia has a traditional storefront that wouldn’t see much in the way of rotation, it still seems like a huge endeavor to publish listings for each game it sells. When you consider that games rotate in and out of the Game Pass library each month, maintaining App Store listings for each game on the service becomes even more of a chore for Microsoft.

Still, services like Game Pass and Stadia now have a way to get on the App Store, but the question now is whether Google, Facebook, and Microsoft will think getting their streaming services on iOS will be worth the trouble of complying with Apple’s guidelines. Apple has indeed given these companies an in regarding the App Store, but it’s done so in a very complicated way, seemingly to ensure that it has granular control over what’s offered on iOS for better or worse.

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Scammers often try to trick you into sharing personal or financial information by sending you messages or links to websites that might look like they’re from Apple, but their actual purpose is to steal your account information. Some phishing emails will ask you to click on a link to update your account information. Others might look like a receipt for a purchase in the App Store, iTunes Store, iBooks Store or for Apple Music, that you’re certain you didn’t make.

Never enter your account information on websites linked from these messages, and never download or open attachments included within them.

Is this email legitimate?

If you receive an email about an App Store or iTunes Store purchase, and you’re not sure whether it is real, you can look for a couple of things that can help confirm that the message is from Apple.

Genuine purchase receipts—from purchases in the App Store, iTunes Store, iBooks Store, or Apple Music—include your current billing address, which scammers are unlikely to have. You can also review your App Store, iTunes Store, iBooks Store, or Apple Music purchase history.

Emails about your App Store, iTunes Store, iBooks Store, or Apple Music purchases will never ask you to provide this information over email:

Social Security Number
Mother's maiden name
Full credit card number
Credit card CCV code

Learn more about phishing and other scams.

Update your account info safely

If you receive an email asking you to update your account or payment information, only do so in Settings directly on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch; in iTunes or the App Store on your Mac; or in iTunes on a PC.

To update your password for the Apple ID that you use for purchases, do so only in Settings on your device or at appleid.apple.com.

Learn more about security and your Apple ID.

If you received or acted on a likely phishing message:

Apple Web App Store App

If you received a suspicious email, please forward it to reportphishing@apple.com. If you're on a Mac, select the email and choose Forward As Attachment from the Message menu.

Apple App Store Web Search

If you think you might have entered personal information like a password or credit card info on a scam website, immediately change your Apple ID password.