Russian developers will create an alternative application store for Apple smartphones

At the end of January, Apple announced changes according to which iPhone owners will be able to install alternative markets to the App Store. Initially, the opportunity will be provided only to EU residents*.

“We intend to create a Russian application store for the iOS operating system – NashStore,” Arseny Shcheltsin, general director of ANO Digital Platforms, told Izvestia.

According to him, regional restrictions can be circumvented. Shcheltsin explained that when activating an iOS device, users always select the country where the device will be used. And if a person activates an iPhone in the EU, but selects the country “Russia”, they will be shown a screen of the Russian list of applications for pre-installation, although these standards do not apply in the European Union.

The same thing happens with the markets, says the expert. In order for them to work in the Russian Federation, it will be necessary to select one of the European countries as a region.

Experts interviewed by the newspaper warn that choosing another region may give the user access to a “neighboring” application store, but if you need to download applications for the Russian Federation, you will have to change the settings again. At the same time, when changing regions, for example, music or movies in Russian applications may not work.

Apple did not respond to the publication’s question about whether they would operate alternative stores in the Russian Federation.

• *At the end of August 2023, the EU Digital Markets Law came into force. The European Commission now verifies that 19 major platforms (including TikTok, X, Google and others) are complying with the rules and applies sanctions if violations are detected.
• In particular, until March 7, 2024, Apple must allow alternative markets to operate on iOS.
• In 2022, the head of the Ministry of Digital Development, Maksut Shadayev, announced the department’s plans to prepare a bill similar to the European one, which would force Apple to allow the installation of alternative stores on the iPhone. In 2023, the minister said that “a bill of this type is already ready and is now being finalized.”