According to Bloomberg industry insider Mark Gurman, big changes are coming to the Apple App Store: Following EU intervention that forced Apple to allow the use of alternative app stores on its devices, a second App Store team will handle apps from other sources.
App Store head Phil Schiller, an “Apple Fellow,” is splitting the current App Store team into two. Additionally, Matt Fisher, who served as vice president of App Store and Apple Arcade, is leaving the company after a long tenure. Fisher reminisced with fond memories as he announced his departure and welcomed the pair who will take over the newly formed team.
This second team would naturally only be needed in the EU, where Apple has been forced to allow alternative sources for app downloads. It remains to be seen how this team will specifically manage alternative downloads. If I had to speculate, I would say this team could be responsible for not only ensuring that apps from certain stores are safe, but also educating users on how to stay safe when downloading these apps.
EU users can now download games from other stores. Creepy. | Image credit — PhoneArena
After a number of losses with the EU, Apple is currently not bringing Apple Intelligence to the region, which in my opinion makes the upcoming iPhone 16 much less appealing in the EU than in other markets, especially as AI becomes a big part of the picture going forward. iPhone 16 Apple is incorporating AI into its sales strategy.
The iPhone has long been one of the best mobile phones ever made, but recent developments suggest the EU may have a very different experience with Apple products going forward.