App Store

The App Store has been the central platform for distributing apps within the Apple ecosystem since July 2008 – available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV and Vision Pro, each in dedicated versions. Today the store offers several million apps across nearly every category, from games and productivity to creativity, banking, education and health. At the same time, the App Store is Apple's most important gateway into the services business: through in-app purchases, subscriptions and Apple's commission on digital revenue, it has become one of the largest software distribution channels in the world – and one that is constantly at the center of antitrust cases, legislative initiatives and public debate.

Apfelpatient.de documents the full evolution of the App Store under this tag: regulatory proceedings in the EU, the US, India, Brazil and other countries, ongoing legal disputes around external payment links and commissions, new subscription models and pricing options for developers, app review topics such as gambling apps and AI-generated content, mysterious update mechanisms, shifting app ratings, and background on AI coding tools and their impact on new submissions. Alternative marketplaces under the Digital Markets Act and Apple's response to them are also covered here.

Anyone wanting to understand the App Store as the economic, legal and technical hub of the Apple ecosystem will find a complete topic hub right here.