Apple Announces Ability for EU Users to Download Apps Directly From Websites

Apple today announced additional changes for developers and users in the European Union. The changes allow developers in the EU to distribute apps directly from their own websites and more.

More options for apps distributed in the European Union

March 12, 2024

We’re providing more flexibility for developers who distribute apps in the European Union (EU), including introducing a new way to distribute apps directly from a developer’s website.

More flexibility

Developers who’ve agreed to the Alternative Terms Addendum for Apps in the EU have new options for their apps in the EU:

• Alternative app marketplaces. Marketplaces can choose to offer a catalog of apps solely from the developer of the marketplace.
• Linking out to purchase. When directing users to complete a transaction for digital goods or services on an external webpage, developers can choose how to design promotions, discounts, and other deals. The Apple-provided design templates, which are optimized for key purchase and promotional use cases, are now optional.

Distributing directly from your website

Web Distribution, available with a software update later this spring, will let authorized developers distribute their iOS apps to EU users directly from a website owned by the developer. Apple will provide authorized developers access to APIs that facilitate the distribution of their apps from the web, integrate with system functionality, back up and restore users’ apps, and more. For details, visit Getting ready for Web Distribution in the EU.

With the release of iOS 17.4 in the EU Apple began allowing third-party stores to offer a catalog of their own apps as well as the apps of other developers. As of today, Apple is allowing third-party app stores to offer apps solely from their own catalog.

When directing users to complete a transaction for digital goods or services on an external webpage, developers can choose how to design promotions, discounts, and other deals, using Apple-provided design templates.

Developers will soon be able to distribute their apps directly from their websites, as long as they meet specific criteria, such as being a member of the Apple Developer Program for two continuous years or more and having an app with more than one million first installs on iOS in the EU in the prior year, and commit to ongoing requirements, such as publishing transparent data collection policies.

Apple’s latest changes in iOS 17.4 in the EU come as Apple has been working to comply with the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA).