Apple has made a 180-degree turn in its decision regarding the removal of web apps from the iOS home screen in the European Union, a resolution it initially attributed to compliance with the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The company has updated its developer support page and now states it will “continue to offer home screen web apps in the European Union” with the release of iOS 17.4 scheduled for early March.
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When Apple announced the decision to remove web applications from the home screen, also known as progressive web apps or PWAs, it claimed it had no alternative. At the time, the company argued that adapting these applications to function with external browsers posed a threat to user security and would require an impractical effort, given the other obligations of the DMA and the low adoption rate of this app type. One of the DMA’s requirements is to allow the existence of alternative navigation or rendering engines.
Decision Reversal and Updated Approach
Now, Apple cites received requests to maintain support for these applications as the reason for its reversal. However, before celebrating too soon, it’s essential to read the fine print. Apple will not develop an integration architecture overnight, but web applications will continue to be built with WebKit, the engine used by the Safari browser. This means that web applications downloaded from other browsers, such as Chrome (which uses Chromium), may not function with their own engines, despite Apple adding support for them through the DMA.
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Criticism and Impact
Apple’s initial decision to remove web apps garnered criticism from both developers and users. While web applications behave similarly to those in Safari, their experience differs due to their independence from the browser, optimized toolbar, customizable name and icon, and ability to display notifications from the web. Perhaps Apple’s change of heart stems from requests by developers and users, or it may be influenced by the European Commission’s investigation into this specific issue.
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