It hasn’t been long since the publication of our report on what’s new in iOS 17.4, starting with the opening of alternative app stores. Until now, however, the latter have remained in hiding, which is why it certainly does not go unnoticed the launch, also in Italy, of AltStore PAL.
As reported by The Verge and as we read in a post published on developer Riley Testut’s blog on April 17, 2024, the digital store is now officially active in Europe. However, there is a price to pay to be able to access it, given that, to cover the costs deriving from Apple’s Core Technology Fee (CTF), it was decided to charge an annual subscription of 1.50 euros (plus taxes, i.e. 1.83 euros per year in Italy).
As a reminder, third-party app store developers must pay Apple 50 cents for each app installation after the first million, as well as for each first installation of an alternative app store. This means that solutions like AltStore PAL must find a sustainable business model. Hence the idea of offering an annual subscription costing just a few euros. Will it be a winning choice? We’ll see.
The fact is that the launch of AltStore PAL, which requires at least iOS 17.4, provides access to two applications: the Delta emulator and the Clip clipboard manager. The first can be downloaded for free (net of the cost of the subscription), while the second requires an additional Patreon contribution of at least 1 euro (plus taxes). In short, the road starts a bit “uphill” for alternative app stores, but at least now there is an actual first “official” attempt to create an alternative to the App Store on iPhone.
In any case, AltStore PAL also opens the doors to other third-party developers, provided that the latter host the apps independently on their servers and that users are willing to go through theadding sources, or rather URLs that contain JSON filesper installarle.
What is certain is that the launch of the update to iOS 17.4, linked to the entry into force of DMA (Digital Markets Act) europeois bringing with it significant news.
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