Brazil allows users to download apps from sources other than the App Store for three months
It’s been a year since Apple revolutionized its software ecosystem in Europe by allowing users to download apps outside the App Store, one of several commitments directly linked to the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). Then came iOS 17.4, which officially enabled the feature, giving rise to the first alternative stores like AltStore. Brazil's famous legal battle against Apple forced the company to enable this functionality on its territory.
That’s what 9to5Mac reveals, highlighting how Judge Pablo Zuniga has ordered Apple to include sideloading apps in iOS and download apps from outside the App Store. In order to do so, the Californian company was given a 90-day reprieve, in a ruling that is in line with guidelines imposed by the European Union in recent months.
It is worth noting that this is not the first time that Brazil has put pressure on Apple to force Apple to open up its ecosystem. At the end of 2024, the Brazilian antitrust authority issued a similar order, but within a relatively short period of 20 days and fines. Apple appealed the decision and the measure was withdrawn as “unnecessary and disproportionate,” although it forced the American company to undergo a public hearing.
This case was a precursor to the legal situation Apple is currently facing in Brazil. Although the courts upheld the company’s appeal, CADE filed another appeal, which led to this order from Judge Zuniga. The judge believes that Apple has already implemented similar measures in other jurisdictions without it affecting its business model.
This is written, verbatim, by Zuniga himself. According to him, Apple has "already complied with similar commitments in other countries without demonstrating any significant impact or irreparable damage to its business model." The company representative explained that Apple is betting on "dynamic and competitive" markets and explained that, in the company's view, these measures could cause privacy and security problems for Brazilian users.
While Apple appealed the first injunction, the company argued that these requests were not urgent and, more importantly, would affect the development of Apple’s business in Brazil. This is a point that Zuniga denies, focusing on the economic performance that Apple itself has shown a year after opening its App Store on European soil. The judge believes that these restrictions prevent new competitors from entering the Brazilian sector.
The whole legal mess began with a lawsuit filed by Latin American online marketplace Mercado Libre, which alleged that Apple’s practices with its App Store forced developers to pay questionable fees to market their apps on the App Store. Of course, they weren’t alone; Epic Games and several other developers have been locked in fierce legal battles with Apple for years over this very reason.
But that didn’t stop Apple from having to give in and comply with several EU antitrust regulations. The Digital Markets Act (DMA) already classifies both the iPhone and the App Store itself as gateways that must comply with these European laws—something that also applies to iPads. Something very similar happened with the Lightning port and the dispute over the adoption of USB-C ports as universal chargers. Apple eventually gave in on the implementation of the port.