Yeah, I look forward to getting sideloading and at the end of last year it seemed like apple was preparing to play nice, and there was rumours they would announce info at WWDC2023 and that it would be included in iOS17 (which would mean ahead of the required deadline).
But then the rumours stopped. Which made me come to the same conclusion as you.
And looking at previous examples of BigTech defying the spirit of directives, like how Google blatantly ignored the consent rules for GDPR for 3 years[1], I guess we will get proper working sideloading around 2027.
The only hope is that even if it’s hard and complicated, it will make things like AltStore work well enough that I can sideload a few things to fix the biggest annoyances in iOS.
Unlike GDPR, the DMA has specific provisions to prevent shenanigans:
> 3. The gatekeeper shall ensure that the obligations of Articles 5, 6 and 7 are fully and effectively complied with.
> 4. The gatekeeper shall not engage in any behaviour that undermines effective compliance with the obligations of Articles 5, 6 and 7 regardless of whether that behaviour is of a contractual, commercial or technical nature, or of any other nature, or consists in the use of behavioural techniques or interface design.
> 6. The gatekeeper shall not degrade the conditions or quality of any of the core platform services provided to business users or end users who avail themselves of the rights or choices laid down in Articles 5, 6 and 7, or make the exercise of those rights or choices unduly difficult, including by offering choices to the end-user in a non-neutral manner, or by subverting end users’ or business users' autonomy, decision-making, or free choice via the structure, design, function or manner of operation of a user interface or a part thereof.
> 7. Where the gatekeeper circumvents or attempts to circumvent any of the obligations in Article 5, 6, or 7 in a manner described in paragraphs 4, 5 and 6 of this Article, the Commission may open proceedings pursuant to Article 20 and adopt an implementing act referred to in Article 8(2) in order to specify the measures that the gatekeeper is to implement.
I don't believe that the DMA has (or even could have, given ratified international treaties) anything that nullifies intellectual property rights.
The gatekeepers are required to provide "fair" access, but that doesn't mean everything has to be free of charge.
As an example, I would fully expect that iOS devices will continue to require digital signatures to execute, regardless of installation method. And those digital signatures will only be available to those who pay for the $99/yr developer program and comply with those regulations.
Feel free to bookmark my post and come back to make fun of me if I’m wrong.
I don’t think that there is any “merely” anything. I think it’s a complicated process with tons of patents that you get a license to use when you pay for a developer membership.
Do you believe homebrew software for game consoles is illegal? Do you hold that same opinion for apps offered for jailbroken iDevices?
Patents cover specific implementations. A lightbulb is patented. A specific machine that is connected to one cannot infringe on the patent for the lughtbulb itself, since it doesn't implement its inner mechanisms.
But then the rumours stopped. Which made me come to the same conclusion as you.
And looking at previous examples of BigTech defying the spirit of directives, like how Google blatantly ignored the consent rules for GDPR for 3 years[1], I guess we will get proper working sideloading around 2027.
The only hope is that even if it’s hard and complicated, it will make things like AltStore work well enough that I can sideload a few things to fix the biggest annoyances in iOS.
[1] https://iapp.org/news/a/cnils-eprivacy-fines-reveal-potentia...