The Fortnite withdrawal of the App Store has shown it: Apple is very strict on the billing rules of its store. And yet, just days before the media storm unleashed by Epic, Setapp managed to expand its catalog of apps by subscribing to iOS apps.
For $ 12.50 / month, you have nearly 200 Mac applications and, this is the novelty, a dozen iOS apps. “IT VIOLATES A MILLION RULES, exclaimed on Twitter developer Ryan Jones. We’ve spent weeks racking our brains to figure out the latest bullshit rules, and something that explicitly breaks multiple rules is allowed. “
In a statement, Setapp seeks to dispel the misunderstanding in the developer community. It took several years of reflection for the service to develop a solution that satisfies all parties, namely the publishers who are part of its offer, its customers and finally Apple, which has intangible billing rules (or almost).
Setapp had indeed to cross a very mined ground – sections 3.1 and 3.2 of the guidelines from the App Store – to be able to include iOS apps in your subscription, without Apple having any complaints. It is by following all of the following conditions that the service obtained the green light from the validation team:
- Desktop apps that have iOS companions are the only apps available in Setapp that are eligible for the iOS offer (no question of unlocking with Setapp an app exclusively available on iOS)
- All iOS apps have been validated by Apple and are free to download
- IOS users are not encouraged to make purchases other than Apple’s in-app purchases
- All features and content are also available through in-app purchases or App Store subscriptions (no way Setapp will unlock something that Apple’s payment system can’t unlock)
- Applications should not include anything that directs users to purchasing mechanisms other than the App Store
- Apps should not read QR codes or request a license number to unlock content or features
All these constraints mean that the solution found by Setapp is atypical – you have to scan two QR codes in a row with your iPhone – but it works. However, this list of conditions clearly shows that Setapp cannot fully replicate its model on iOS. Apple’s rules prevent it from making a subscription that includes as many apps on iOS as it does on Mac. This is precisely what seeks to change Epic – who wants to open his own app store on iOS – by attacking Apple for anti-competitive practices.
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