Apple reportedly restricts testing of third-party browser engines to 'devices physically located in the EU'
In order to comply with the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA), Apple allowed browser engines other than
Apple limits third-party browser engine work on EU devices • The Register
https://www.theregister.com/2024/05/17/apple_browser_eu/
Testing iOS Browsers With Third-Party Engines Geofenced to EU - MacRumors
https://www.macrumors.com/2024/05/17/third-party-browser-engine-testing-geofenced-to-eu/
Apple makes it hard for testing 3rd-party web engines outside the EU
https://9to5mac.com/2024/05/17/developers-web-browser-engines-eu/
The EU's DMA is a law that requires large platforms (gatekeepers) to act fairly, and at the time of writing, Apple, Alphabet, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and ByteDance are designated as gatekeepers. The DMA regulates 'core platform services' operated by gatekeepers, such as operating systems such as iOS and Windows, social networking sites such as TikTok and Facebook, and app distribution stores such as Google Play and the App Store, giving users options other than the gatekeepers.
Because iOS, the mobile operating system for iPhones, is also subject to DMA restrictions, Apple has been forced to make various concessions in the EU, such as supporting third-party app stores, one of which is the 'allowance of mobile engines other than Webkit.'
Until now, Apple has limited browsers that run on iOS to those that use the Webkit engine. Therefore, browsers such as Chrome and Edge, which run on the Chromium engine, and Firefox, which runs on the Gecko engine, did not work on iOS as they were, and they were forced to run on Webkit, and many functions were restricted on iOS.
The DMA has called for restrictions on this practice, and Apple has finally allowed browser engines other than Webkit in iOS 17.4, allowing browsers other than Safari, such as Chrome, Firefox, and Opera, to function perfectly.
Apple finally allows full versions of Chrome and Firefox to run on iPhone - GIGAZINE
However, The Register recently reported that Apple is limiting the development and testing of third-party browser engines to devices that are physically located in the EU, meaning that browser makers whose development teams are based outside the EU, such as in the US, can only test their browsers on simulators that run on Macs and other devices, rather than on actual iPhones.
Of course, some tests can be done in simulators, but tests on real devices are more reliable, and even if a bug is reported by an EU user, it may be difficult to reproduce it.
'By preventing browser engineers around the world from working on actual browser development unless they have a physical location in the EU, Apple is preventing those engineers from competing on iOS or shipping products,' said Alex Moore, executive director of Open Web Advocacy , a nonprofit organization that promotes the open web. 'This is clearly unreasonable and can only be described as malicious compliance. A likely scenario is that, as a browser vendor, you have a security problem, and the top experts on those types of vulnerabilities are in the US. Do they have to go to the EU to test and fix them on real devices? At the very least, Apple should issue guidance that this is a misunderstanding and that browser vendor test devices are not included.'
While Apple imposes restrictions on browser developers outside the EU, EU-based browser makers Opera and Vivaldi said they have not heard of any such requirements from Apple. Vivaldi CEO John Stevenson von Tetzchner said, 'Our team is all based in the European Economic Area (EEA) , so we assume this doesn't apply to us. But I don't understand why we have such a rule. I think this would be seen as an anti-competitive move, too.'
Google, Mozilla and Apple did not respond to requests for comment.
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