Brazilian Court Mandates iOS Sideloading
Filipe Espósito (via Dare Obasanjo):
As reported by Brazilian newspaper Valor Econômico (via O Globo), a federal judge in Brazil ruled on Wednesday that Apple will have to open up the iOS ecosystem to third-party apps in Brazil just like the company did in the EU. The judge considers that the “limitations” imposed by the company on developers could jeopardize the entry of new competitors in the segment.
In November 2024, the Brazilian antitrust regulator “Cade” ruled that Apple can no longer prevent developers from selling content and distributing apps outside the App Store in Brazil. The company would have 20 days to comply with Brazil’s antitrust legislation, otherwise it would be fined more than $40,000 a day.
[…]
Judge Pablo Zuniga has ordered that Apple will have to implement the required changes in Brazil within the next three months. The judge states that, despite Apple’s claims, the company “has already complied with similar obligations in other countries, without demonstrating a significant impact or irreparable damage to its business model.”
The rules are changing worldwide. Apple can make this easy for itself, or it can tediously lose its fights one country at a time.
Previously:
- The Tyranny of Apps
- Brazil Fines Apple Over FaceApp
- DMA Compliance: Web Distribution of iOS Apps in EU
- Brazil Rules Against Apple’s Anti-Steering Rules
- Why Apple Should Compromise With Antitrust Regulators
Update (2025-03-12): Juli Clover:
Epic Games plans to bring Fortnite to Brazil after the Brazilian government forces Apple to permit sideloading, according to details Epic shared on social media.
Presumably Apple will just roll out in Brazil the same compliance rules, policies, and APIs that they started offering last year in the EU. But will Brazilian users get access to EU third-party app marketplaces, and vice-versa? Or will Apple try to segregate these app marketplaces region-by-region, such that Brazilian users will only get access to Brazilian third-party app marketplaces, and EU users will remain limited only to EU third-party app marketplaces?
2 Comments RSS · Twitter · Mastodon
That's great news. I wish we'd see this in America
It's interesting how Apple will roll over for authoritarians like China and Donald but they fight pro-consumer laws like it'll be the death of them
