Subj : No, you cant run a PC emulator on your iPhone or iPad, Apple says
To   : All
From : TechnologyDaily
Date : Tue Jun 25 2024 10:45:05

No, you cant run a PC emulator on your iPhone or iPad, Apple says

Date:
Tue, 25 Jun 2024 09:42:26 +0000

Description:
Developers are finding that Apple wont allow PC emulators on the App Store, 
despite other emulators being permitted.

FULL STORY
======================================================================

In recent weeks, Apple has relaxed its vice-like grip on the App Store and 
has permitted various retro games emulators to run on iOS ahead of the launch 
of iOS 18 . Now, though, the company seems to have put its foot down and is 
specifically drawing the line at allowing you to run PC emulators on its 
devices. 

As reported by The Verge , at least two developers of PC emulators have had 
their apps rejected from the App Store. Those apps are iDOS 3, which emulates 
the DOS operating system, and UTM SE, which allows Windows to be run on iOS. 

Chaoji Li, iDOS 3s developer, was told by Apple: The app provides emulator 
functionality but is not emulating a retro game console specifically. Only 
emulators of retro game consoles are appropriate per guideline 4.7. This 
refers to section 4.7 of the official App Store guidelines , which states 
that retro game console emulator apps can offer to download games. 

As for UTM SE, the developer posted on X that the App Store Review Board 
determined that PC is not a console regardless of the fact that there are 
retro Windows / DOS games for the PC that UTM SE can be useful in running. 

So while Apple is now happy to welcome retro game emulators on iPhones and 
iPads we've now seen emulators for everything from Nintendo 3DS to PS1 games  
it's stubbornly drawing the line at PC emulators, and that's proving a little 
controversial. A lack of consistency (Image credit: Brett Jordan / Pexels) 

Developers have complained about Apples confusing and seemingly fickle App 
Store review process for many years, and the latest rejections are not likely 
to assuage those concerns. For instance, while section 4.7 of the App Store 
rules states that retro games emulators are allowed, Apple has never 
clarified what exactly qualifies as retro. 

When I asked what changes I should make to be compliant, they had no idea, 
nor when I asked what a retro game console is, said iDOS 3 developer Li on 
their blog . Its still the same old unreasonable answer along the line of we 
know it when we see it. 

It could be argued that DOS and early versions of Windows are indeed retro 
console systems, since they originated in the 1980s and 1990s and have been 
home to a number of now-classic games. Yet evidently Apple feels that they 
cross an invisible and undetermined line that is not explicitly mentioned in 
the App Store guidelines. 

Despite Apple allowing retro gaming emulators  and somewhat clarifying the 
rules surrounding them  earlier this year, it seems that the policy is not as 
clear as it could be. As Li said in an email to The Verge, In short, as the 
sole rule maker and enforcer in [the] iOS ecosystem, they dont need to be 
consistent at all. You might also like Retro game emulators are now allowed 
in the iOS App Store, but there are caveats Want a retro gaming emulator on 
your iPhone? Apple just clarified the state of play on iOS The first gaming 
emulators are now on the iOS App Store  and one has already been pulled



======================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/phones/no-you-cant-run-a-pc-emulator-on-your-iphone-
or-ipad-apple-says


--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 (Linux/64)
 * Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100)

.