Apple has released a new statement reversing its decision to drop the planned removal of the home screen web app in the iOS 17.4 update.

According to Apple's original plan, the home screen web app was to be removed from all Apple devices running iOS 17.4 in Europe. Apple said this was to comply with the EU's new Digital Markets Act (DMA), but the company has retracted and appears to "continue to offer the existing home screen web app functionality in the EU."

Apple's statement claims that this is because the company "received a request to continue to offer home screen web app support in iOS and will continue to offer existing home screen web app functionality in the EU." Apple then explains that the initial need to remove home screen web apps was due to both security and privacy concerns regarding web apps

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However, Apple claims that it will continue to support this feature and that "this support means that home screen web apps will continue to be built directly on top of WebKit and its security architecture, and the security and privacy model of native apps on iOS and is consistent with the security and privacy models of native apps on iOS."

When Apple initially announced plans to stop support for home screen web apps, there was backlash from developers and other groups, and The Open Web Advocacy group stated in an open letter to Tim Cook that "as a result, entire categories of apps will no longer run on the web . will not be able to run on the web." Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, recently stated that Apple's plan is "yet another example of bad compliance."

The company's plan to make it impossible to run apps on the web is a "new and dangerous" one, and the company is "not going to be able to run apps on the web for a long time.

Apple appears to be working to ensure that its devices comply with the EU DMA, but its solutions often seem to draw more anger than praise. This may not be entirely fair, as Apple is in the business of making money. But the fact that Apple is willing to reverse its decision seems to be a good thing for its European customers.

Apple plans to release iOS 17.4 this month. Let's keep an eye on our coverage of that, as it risks getting lost in the shuffle now that Apple is set to unveil a new iPad and M3 MacBook Air this week.