According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple is preparing to split its app store in two, one for the European Union and one for the rest of the world.

In his newsletter Power On, Gurman explained how Apple is currently working to make its app store compliant with EU digital marketing laws. This will require Apple to split its App Store into two parts: one for most of the world and one for the EU.

People living in the EU, under the regulations, need to be able to install apps from outside the default store, use non-Apple payment processors, and receive better integration between first-party and third-party apps and features.

There was considerable disappointment that Apple did not allow side-loading of apps in iOS 17, as had been proposed. Craig Federighi, Apple's VP of Software Engineering and thus the real face of iOS, said at WWDC 2023: regarding iOS 17 sideloading, "Whatever we do is right for our customers and their safety. is the right thing to do," he said. He also noted that he was working with the EU at the time on what secure compliance looked like.

Garman speculated that this could lead to potential profit losses for Apple, as users would be able to purchase apps from other sources. It is also possible that other countries will follow suit and seek to reduce Apple's monopoly. Japan is rumored to be considering similar legal measures, but there is no confirmation yet.

One major hurdle for Apple will be controlling potential security threats that could arise from opening up its software ecosystem; the recent security breach at the App Store in early 2023 is a clear indication that Apple was not ready for this type of revealed that Apple was not prepared to combat this type of security threat. Therefore, Apple needs to find a way to protect its customers when this order is enforced or make it clear that going outside the App Store is at its own risk.

The problem of monopolies in the high-tech industry has been going on for decades, and now many of the major players seem to be struggling. For example, Google recently lost a lawsuit against Epic regarding its app store monopoly. Unless Apple finds a way to win against the EU, it will have to split up its App Store according to DMA rules. However, it remains to be seen whether this will be a true opening of the App Store to EU citizens or just a half-hearted effort to fulfill Apple's legal obligations.