App Store - page 3

These are Apple’s picks for the best App Store apps and games of 2022

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2021 App Store Awards
App Store award winners are going to get a physical plaque from Apple.
Photo: Apple

Apple crowned 16 apps and games as winners of its 2022 App Store Awards for “making a profound cultural impact.” The App Store’s editorial team honored apps and games on five platforms: iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV.

This time around, the company also selected five “Cultural Impact winners that have made a lasting impact on people’s lives and influenced culture,” Apple said in a press release Tuesday.

SwiftKey for iPhone is back on the App Store

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SwiftKey works great on the giant iPhone 6 Plus.
Microsoft brings back SwiftKey for iPhone.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

In an unexpected development, SwiftKey is back on the App Store just a month after Microsoft removed the virtual keyboard app.

The move comes following customer feedback about the discontinuation of SwiftKey for iOS.

Apple apps secretly track users, lawsuit claims

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App Store
A proposed class-action lawsuit claims Apple applications, including the App Store, surreptitiously track users.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

A class-action lawsuit filed in California alleges that, “Apple’s assurances and promises regarding privacy are utterly false.”

The lawsuit is based on the work of a security researcher who claims that many of Apple’s own applications send detailed analytics information to the developer even after users ask them to stop.

Apple will jack up App Store prices in Europe and other countries

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App Store
You will have to pay more for apps and games on the App Store from October.
Image: Apple/Cult of Mac

Apple has announced that it will increase the prices of apps and in-app purchases on the App Store in Europe and some other countries. The changes come into effect starting October 5, 2022.

The weakening Euro has forced the Cupertino giant to make this move.

DOJ takes a step closer to Apple antitrust suit

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App Store faces barrage of antitrust charges
The U.S. Justice Department might hit Apple with an antitrust lawsuit before the end of 2022.
Photo: Sora Shimazaki/Pexels CC

The U.S. Department of Justice reportedly moved closer to filing an antitrust lawsuit against Apple. The DOJ has investigated the iPhone-maker over the past several years and begun to actually write a potential suit.

The government agency has looked into many aspects of Apple’s business and there’s no clear word on whether the complaint will be about the App Store or something else.

Apple Maps could start showing ads in 2023

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3D maps are launching in more cities.
Ads are coming to Apple Maps.
Photo: Apple

Apple will reportedly start showing ads inside Apple Maps on iPhone starting next year. The company is looking to generate more revenue from its ad business in the coming years.

Apple currently displays ads inside the App Store and certain apps like Apple News and Stocks.

Apple plans to squeeze even more money out of App Store

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iPhone App Store Today tab will soon include advertising
Get ready for new ads to appear in the iPhone App Store.
Image: Apple

Apple is going further into the ad business. Soon, a paid advertisment will be added to the Today tab of the App Store. And a paid link will be added to the product pages for individual applications.

These will join the Search Ads that are already included in the App Store.

Apple acting as an advertising broker is likely to be controversial because the company has taken a strong stance on targeted ads provided by Google, Facebook and others.

Lawmakers call for quick votes on Big Tech antitrust bills

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Some lawmakers urge votes take place before recess.
Some lawmakers urge votes take place before the upcoming recess.
Photo: Jens June/Pixabay

A letter from progressive members of the U.S. House of Representatives this week urged Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to call for votes soon on a pair of antitrust bills that would rein in the power of tech giants like Apple and Google in an attempt to open up competition from more companies.

Without votes “in the next few weeks,” lawmakers’ upcoming months-long recess could delay action considerably.

EU’s Digital Markets Act takes step toward forcing huge changes to iPhone

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European Union
The European Union takes another step toward tough regulations on tech giants like Apple.
Photo: Freestocks.org

The European Parliament passed the landmark Digital Markets Act on Tuesday. The legislation aims to outlaw many common practices of Big Tech companies, especially Apple, Google and Amazon.

For iPhone users, the DMA would force Apple to allow rival app stores and sideloaded applications. And these are only two of many significant changes in the act.

There are still further steps the the EU government must go through before the DMA goes into effect, but that’s expected to happen before the end of 2022.

South Korean App Store developers can now ditch Apple’s payment system

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App Store will accept alternative payment systems
But it might not be beneficial to use an alternative payment system.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Apple now allows App Store developers in South Korea to use third-party payment systems. The option is limited to apps distributed in the country.

The Cupertino giant is allowing alternative payment processors in the South Korean App Store to comply with the amended Telecommunications Business Act.

Get emulators, clipboard history on your iPhone without jailbreaking

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Install the apps Apple doesn’t want on the App Store with AltStore.
Install the apps Apple doesn’t want on the App Store with AltStore.
Image: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple bans apps like emulators and clipboard history on your iPhone, but there’s a clever way to sideload these apps without jailbreaking.

The official App Store is the only way Apple wants you to get apps on the iPhone. If there’s an app that doesn’t fit Apple’s strict rules, it doesn’t get on the App Store at all.

Apple strictly forbids a few categories of apps. Emulators — apps that play games from old consoles like the Nintendo Entertainment System and GameBoy — are prohibited. Porn is not allowed either. System-wide features like clipboard managers — which are very popular and even downloadable on the Mac App Store — are not allowed on the iPhone. (My favorite is Maccy.)

That doesn’t mean it’s impossible to get these types of apps, though. You can install an alternative App Store for iPhone called AltStore right now with the help of a Mac or PC. With AltStore, you can install verboten apps like emulators and clipboard history without jailbreaking your iPhone.

Today in Apple history: App Store developers earn $10 billion and counting

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In its first five years, the App Store becomes an unstoppable money machine, paying out $10 billion to app developers.
In its first five years, the App Store becomes an unstoppable money machine.
Photo: Apple

June 10 Today in Apple history: App Store developers earn $10 billion and counting June 10, 2013: Apple passes a major milestone in iOS history, as payments to app developers top $10 billion on the App Store’s fifth birthday.

Speaking at WWDC 2013, Apple CEO Tim Cook reveals that the company paid out half of this money in the previous year. He also notes that this outrageous total is three times more than all other app store platforms combined. With 575 million user accounts registered, Apple has more credit cards on file than any other company on the internet.

People have downloaded 50 billion apps in total out of a collection of 900,000 available, Cook says, with 93% of the apps downloaded at least once every month.

Games get to the top of App Store ranks easier than other apps

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Competition is making things harder, but game apps climb the App Store charts much more easily than non-game apps.
Competition is making things harder, but game apps climb the App Store charts much more easily than non-game apps.
Photo: Sensor Tower

New data from a couple of analytics firms shows that it’s harder now than ever to get an app to the top of App Store rankings, thanks to stiffer competition.

But the data shows that gaming apps have an easier time of it than other types of apps.

App Store stopped nearly $1.5 billion in fraud in 2021, Apple says

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Apple's press materials led with this graphic.
Apple's press materials led with this graphic.
Photo: Apple

Apple distributed a new set of fraud analysis data Wednesday. It indicated the App Store prevented 1.6 million “risky” and “untrustworthy” apps from defrauding users in 2021, stopping “nearly $1.5 billion in fraudulent transactions.”

As with other recent data compilations, Cupertino released the news at a time when the App Store’s strict policies have come under fire.

US government effort to regulate Big Tech stalls

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App Store faces barrage of antitrust charges
Support is lagging for a centerpiece of U.S. government efforts to regulate Big Tech.
Photo: Sora Shimazaki/Pexels CC

A bill aimed at regulating Big Tech is reportedly losing support in the U.S. Senate. The fate of the American Choice and Innovation Online Act is now in question.

It is a Democratic proposal but some Senate Democrats are leery about voting for it in an election year.

Mobile gaming rakes in far more money than PC and console

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PUBG Mobile
Revenue from iPhone and Android games like 'PUBG Mobile' dwarfs traditional gaming.
Photo: PUBG

Games played on iPhone and Android represents 61% of the overall gaming market, according to two market analysis firms. And mobile’s lead over PC and console gaming is growing.

The total gaming market is set to hit $222 billion in 2022. For comparison, global film revenue for 2019 (the last pre-pandemic year) was $42.5 billion.

Small developers are earning more through the App Store

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Small developers are earning more through the App Store
Revenue growth for small App Store developers outpaces growth for large developers.
Photo: Apple

App Store revenue for smaller developers increased by 113% over the past two years – more than double the growth of large developers, according to a study financed by Apple.

And the iPhone app economy supported more than 2.2 million jobs in the U.S. in 2021.

Apple reminds developers their apps must offer account deletion by June 30

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App Store
iOS apps will soon be required to offer an option to delete accounts
Image: Apple/Cult of Mac

Ahead of the June 30, 2022 deadline, Apple has reminded developers that if they offer users an option to create new accounts from their app, they must also provide a way to delete them.

Apple first announced this change in June last year, with the rule initially set to go into force by January 31, 2022. However, due to the complexity involved, the company delayed its implementation by five months to give developers additional time.

You can no longer pay for Apple services in India using a credit or debit card

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Developer relations is getting more complex
Blame the new RBI regulations for this move from Apple
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple has sent out emails to its customers in India informing them that it won’t be accepting credit and debit cards for payments on the App Store and other Apple services starting June 1, 2022.

The announcement comes ahead of the new regulations from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) going live.

iPhone apps can now increase subscription prices without permission

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Apple raked in the cash last quarter.
Developers no longer need approval to increase iPhone subscription prices.
Photo: Jim Merithew/Cult of Mac

Pay attention to renewal notices for App Store subscriptions because these are the only notification you’ll receive that the cost is going up. Developers are now allowed to increase iPhone app subscription prices without users having to opt in.

There are limits on how much the fees can go up, though.

Apple wants to make more money from streaming and advertising

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An Apple One bundle might be announced in September. Or October.
Eddy Cue wants Apple to make more money from its streaming and advertising businesses.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Eddy Cue, Apple’s SVP of Services, is reportedly looking to restructure the company’s offerings to make a more significant push in streaming and advertising.

Apple’s services business has been growing rapidly over the last few years. It currently boasts more than 825 million paid subscribers.