UPDATE MARCH 1 2024

Apparently apple has relented and my original post is no longer relevant. You can continue to use the PWA in the EU! I'll keep this post up for posterity. Apple.com:

UPDATE: Previously, Apple announced plans to remove the Home Screen web apps capability in the EU as part of our efforts to comply with the DMA. The need to remove the capability was informed by the complex security and privacy concerns associated with web apps to support alternative browser engines that would require building a new integration architecture that does not currently exist in iOS.

We have received requests to continue to offer support for Home Screen web apps in iOS, therefore we will continue to offer the existing Home Screen web apps capability in the EU. This support means Home Screen web apps continue to be built directly on WebKit and its security architecture, and align with the security and privacy model for native apps on iOS.

Developers and users who may have been impacted by the removal of Home Screen web apps in the beta release of iOS in the EU can expect the return of the existing functionality for Home Screen web apps with the availability of iOS 17.4 in early March.

https://developer.apple.com/support/dma-and-apps-in-the-eu

Hi all! I hope you're doing well and enjoying Voyager's recent features! 💙 My apologies for the below post. I've tried to make it as simple as possible, but unfortunately it is a complex issue.

Due to Apple's iOS 17.4 update in the European Union, some users will need to migrate from the Voyager PWA to the Voyager native app to continue using Voyager by March 2024.

Applicability

IMPORTANT: This ONLY affects users:

Living in the European Union, and
Using an iPhone (iPad/Android not affected), and
Using the PWA version of Voyager (not sure? continue reading)

Voyager has two versions:

⚠️ The PWA, added to home screen from https://vger.app, https://m.lemmy.world etc (affected)
✅ The native app, downloaded from the Apple App Store (NOT affected. You can stop reading if you are using the Voyager native app)

How do I tell if I am using the PWA or native app?

Go to the root of the Settings tab. Look through the menu options. If you see menu item "Install App" you are affected!

I'm affected. How do I keep using Voyager?

Download the Voyager native app:

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/voyager-for-lemmy/id6451429762?platform=iphone

Please note you will have to reconfigure settings and login again.

FAQ:

Q: I live outside the EU. Does this affect me?

A: No.

Q: What will happen to my PWA settings?

A: If you are affected (see above criteria), Apple will delete them when you upgrade to iOS 17.4.

Q: Can I just not upgrade to iOS 17.4?

A: Yes, you can disable automatic updates. But I don't recommend that for security reasons.

Q: What is Apple's justification for removing PWAs in the EU?

Note: Apple calls PWAs "Home Screen Web Apps."

A: apple.com: Why don't users in the EU have access to Home Screen web apps? Please read with a grain of salt.

Q: Where can I get the Voyager native app?

A: You can download Voyager on the App Store:

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/voyager-for-lemmy/id6451429762?platform=iphone

Q: More light reading plz?

all 12 comments

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[-] vojel@discuss.tchncs.de 32 points 6 months ago

Apple acts like a little kid who got robbed for its lollipop. They COULD still allow webapps with safari as backend for example or just let users decide if they want to use PWAs with whatever browser engine. Really ridiculous. I live in the eu and use voyager from the AppStore but this is really getting nuts from apple side.

[-] chiisana@lemmy.chiisana.net 14 points 6 months ago

No. The law requires them to treat all browsers the same. If they allow it for Safari, they must implement API for all. Given the absolutely abysmal user base that actually uses PWAs, it’s no surprise they deprioritized that feature and just deprecate it for all.

Just like the cookie law and GDPR, the intention of DMA might be good but the implementation is going to create a gong show … and frankly I can’t wait for it to begin.

[-] vojel@discuss.tchncs.de 0 points 6 months ago

Yeah that’s why I said „let the users decide“. Honestly most iPhone users do not have a single clue what PWAs are nor uses them or maybe by accident. I like them to use them like a bookmark and it doesn’t force me to use a bloated shitty app like Twitter/x.

[-] Untold1707@lemm.ee 9 points 6 months ago

As it currently stands, they can’t let the user decide under the DMA. To do that they’d need to build an entirely new PWA API and put time into making sure browser engines other than WebKit can’t escape their sandbox. After they do that, then they can let the user decide since all web browsers would then be equal. But as the poster above you said, PWA install rates are very low outside of the small tech enthusiast circle so I don’t blame Apple for axing this feature under the time crunch. I do hope they re-visit this issue and enable PWAs for all engines though because I love the idea of PWAs.