Epic Games reports that after Apple reworked its third-party marketplace install process in iOS 18.6 — trimming down warning screens and simplifying steps — user drop-offs for attempts to install Epic’s app store fell from 65 percent to 25 percent, a roughly 60 percent decline. Apple made these changes to align with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which mandates that gatekeeper platforms allow alternate app distribution. But even as Epic welcomes the improved metrics, it continues to criticize Apple’s remaining restrictions such as the “core technology fee,” notarization rules, and constraints on how developers may market and distribute on iOS. Meanwhile, the DMA also pressures Google (on Android) to reform its install flows, and regulators are closely watching whether Apple’s concessions are sufficient.
Sources: iClarified, The Verge
Key Takeaways
– Apple’s simplified install flow in iOS 18.6 dramatically reduced user abandonment of alternative app store installs — from ~65 percent to ~25 percent according to Epic.
– The change was largely driven by EU regulatory pressure under the Digital Markets Act, which mandates looser restrictions for “gatekeeper” platforms.
– Despite the improvement, Epic (and other developers) continue to challenge Apple’s remaining fees, approval rules, and structural limits on app distribution on iOS.
In-Depth
When the European Union rolled out the Digital Markets Act, regulators centrally tasked major tech platforms like Apple with opening up gatekeeper channels — meaning iOS would no longer be an impenetrable walled garden. Among the requirements: allow users to install apps from third-party marketplaces, permit linking out to external payment options, and reduce friction in those pathways. In response, Apple introduced in July — as part of iOS 18.6 — a revamped user flow for installing alternative app marketplaces on iPhones. The biggest change: reducing multiple “scare screens” (which warned users about the risks of installing from “unknown sources”) into a single disclosure screen that informs users of trade-offs (such as losing App Store subscription management) and clarifies that the alternative marketplace manages its own data.
Epic Games claims this streamlining pushed its abandonment rate from 65 percent down to 25 percent — a 60 percent drop. That level of retention now mirrors what Epic sees when users install its store on macOS or Windows. (Before, the iOS workflow was much more punishing, behavioral wise.) Apple’s motive here is obvious: compliance with DMA and avoiding regulatory penalties. But Epic and others argue the changes remain superficial unless core controls are loosened. For instance, Apple still imposes a “core technology fee” on external app stores, requires notarization and review protocols, and tightly controls how developers may market and distribute their apps. Critics (including Spotify) have called some of Apple’s “DMA-compliance” revisions confusing or bordering on “malicious compliance.”
On Android, Epic also accuses Google of using similarly burdensome flows and “deceptive user interfaces” that sabotage install success rates. Regulators and courts have already forced Google to open more paths for third-party stores. In the bigger picture, the battle is no longer just about whether alternate app stores can exist, but whether users can realistically find and use them without being steered away by friction or fear.
Another wrinkle: Apple has pushed back against the DMA itself. Recently it publicly urged the EU to repeal the law, arguing it delays feature rollouts and raises security risks from sideloading. Meanwhile, the EU has fined Apple over earlier noncompliance and continues probing whether Apple’s residual fees and rules still stifle competition. Whether these changes mark a genuine shift or just a regulatory veneer will depend on how developers judge Apple’s next moves.