AltStore PAL, an alternative app store for iOS made possible by new regulations in markets such as the EU and Japan, is integrated with the open social web. The company on Wednesday announced support for fediverse, an open social web powered by ActivityPub that powers apps like Mastodon, Flipboard, PeerTube, and Threads.
Users on the open social web, popularly known as the “Fediverse,” join or “federation” with independent servers that interoperate, allowing people to communicate with, view, and respond to posts from users on other social platforms.
With AltStore PAL launching its own Mastodon server, AltStore PAL is becoming the first federated app marketplace.
The company plans to use its servers to provide a way for app developers to communicate about news, updates, and alerts for their apps. These posts are federated, so they can be seen, liked, and interacted with by users across the open social web, including Mastodon, Instagram threads, and even Bluesky. However, this assumes that Bluesky users have bridged their accounts to allow users in the Fediverse to access them.
“So, for example, if you have a Mastodon account or a Threads account, you can follow those accounts. If you follow a source from the Mastodon server, you’ll see in your timeline that there’s been an update to your app,” AltStore PAL co-founder Riley Testut told TechCrunch last fall, when the company was teasing plans and announcing a $6 million Series A.
Your interactions on these posts will also appear in the AltStore PAL app itself. This is because users can sign in with their Mastodon or Bluesky accounts to like apps, receive app updates, and receive news alerts within the app marketplace.
At launch, several apps are already on board, including Loops, a connected short-form video app. PeerTube, a federation app similar to YouTube. and iPhanpy, a Mastodon client built by indie developer Matt Fantinel.
Some large apps will be released on this federated marketplace after Apple’s fee structure changes are completed in the EU. (Due to potential liability issues surrounding payments, these apps are waiting for Apple to replace Core Technology Fees with Core Technology Committees, a decision the company made following pushback from regulators over previous fee structure reforms.)
AltStore To access PAL’s Mastodon server, users can visit fosstodon.org/@altstore. Meanwhile, users can also find apps and sources on AltStore PAL’s explore page (explore.alt.store). Along with this update, the AltStore PAL app has also been updated with the iOS 26 liquid glass design and icons.
Source link
