Apple will have to implement major changes to iOS if any antitrust bills currently under discussion in Congress are to be implemented. David Sicilin, the Democratic representative who strongly pushed these new texts, believes that manufacturers will be prohibited from pre-installing their own applications on their devices.

One of the purposes of these bills is to prevent the products and services of these large platforms from having a competitive advantage over competitors. In this context, Apple can now locate its Music, Apple TV or even applications: these apps are direct entry points to the manufacturer’s services (Apple Music, Apple TV+) and products (Airtag). . And these are just examples.

In fact, you can easily imagine that a freshly unboxed iPhone won’t display anything on its screen until the user selects their browser, App Store, email software, device app, photo of their choice, etc. .

In the reporter’s mind, the iPhone user should be able to download alternative apps such as apps from Apple with ease. in such a way, ” [Apple] shall not exploit its dominant position in favor of its products and services “. It is hard to imagine an iPhone without pre-installed applications. In Russia, the manufacturer is required to offer a range of local apps during configuration, but without touching their own applications.

The US regulator isn’t the only one looking for head lice in Apple. Even in Europe, the commission is very interested in Apple practices (read: for Tim Cook, forcing sideloading as Brussels would like to “destroy” the security of the iPhone).