Apple exec: “Sideloading in this case is actually eliminating choice”

Enlarge / The iPhone 12 mini. (credit: Samuel Axon)

Apple, facing calls from regulators to open the gates to alternative app stores and sideloaded apps on the iPhone, has launched a substantial PR push this week to make the case that sideloading would do harm to the iOS ecosystem and its users.

The push builds on a recent quote from an interview with CEO Tim Cook, in which he said the sideloading is “not in the best interests of the user.”

The cornerstone of Apple’s messaging is a new white paper the company has published. The paper appears closely timed with the US House Judiciary Committee’s debates about potential tech antitrust legislation.