It is expected that the relevant bill will begin to be considered in the spring session.
The Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation has prepared a bill obliging Apple Corporation to allow alternatives to the App Store to be installed on its devices.
As Maksut Shadayev, head of the Ministry of Digital Development, explains, the bill may be submitted to the State Duma for consideration during the spring session. The bill is currently being finalized based on proposals from the Russian Presidential Administration.
For the first time, such a bill began to be discussed at the end of 2022. At that time, Shadayev believed that consideration of the bill would begin in the first quarter of 2023; That did not happen.
It is noteworthy that similar restrictions have already been introduced in the European Union. In early 2024, Apple announced that it would soon allow EU users to install alternative app stores on their devices.
It is not entirely clear whether Apple will comply with the bill if it is passed. As experts interviewed by Kommersant note, the company, which has left the Russian market, is still complying with local court decisions, but regulators have almost no means of putting pressure on Apple.
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