![]() However, Apple turned the spotlight back onto its WebKit rules when it defended its App Store hegemony by asserting that web apps present viable competition to the native iOS apps within its App Store. While Epic Game's antitrust lawsuit against Apple has sparked debate and seen a legislative fix proposed, the issue of web engines in Apple's ecosystem has been left unaddressed. The primary concern raised by Langridge and Lawson is that Apple's iOS App Store Guidelines require every browser running on iPhones and iPads to be based on WebKit, the open source project overseen by Apple that serves as the rendering engine for the company's Safari browser.Īpple's browser engine monoculture has long been a sore spot with web developers and web technology advocates like Alex Russell, formerly with Google and currently with Microsoft.īut the issue of browser engine choice has been overshadowed by recent legal and legislative efforts, spearheaded by Epic Games, to open up Apple's iOS App Store to third-party payment systems. "Because at the moment, every browser on iOS, whether it be badged Chrome, Firefox or Edge is actually just a branded skin of Safari, which lags behind because it has no competition on iOS." WebKit woes "The motive of the group is to try to persuade Apple that they need to allow other browser engines on iOS, so the iOS can be a better platform for developing stuff for the modern web," explained Lawson. The group is looking for like-minded developers to take up its cause. ![]() In conjunction with the debut of the group's website, the OWA plans to release a technical paper titled "Bringing Competition to Walled Gardens," that summarizes the group's position and aims to help regulators in the UK and elsewhere understand the consequences of web technology restrictions. Over the past few months, group members have been communicating with the UK Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) to convince the agency that Apple's iOS browser policy harms competition. The group (OWA), organized by UK-based developers Stuart Langridge, Bruce Lawson, and others, aims to promote a more open web by explaining subtle technical details to lawmakers and to help them understand anti-competitive aspects of web technology. On Monday, a group of software engineers plan to launch a group called "Open Web Advocacy" to help online apps compete with native apps and to encourage or compel Apple to relax its iOS browser restrictions.
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