WebProNews

Tag: Open Web Advocacy

  • Google Is Prepping an iOS Browser That Uses Chrome’s Engine

    Google Is Prepping an iOS Browser That Uses Chrome’s Engine

    Google’s engineers are reportedly working on an iOS version of Chrome that will use Chrome’s Blink rendering engine instead of iOS WebKit.

    Apple’s current App Store rules dictate that all web browsers must use the same WebKit rendering engine that Safari uses. This means there is very little true choice among iOS web browsers, with the only real difference being the front-end features.

    According to The Register, Google’s engineers are working on a version of Chrome for iOS that uses Blink, not WebKit.

    Despite how it looks, Google insists that it’s not trying to flaunt Apple’s rules and that the new browser is for internal use only.

    “This is an experimental prototype that we are developing as part of an open source project with the goal to understand certain aspects of performance on iOS,” a spokesperson told The Register. “It will not be available to users and we’ll continue to abide by Apple’s policies.”

    Despite Google’s response, it’s also possible the company is preparing for a future where Apple is forced to allow third-party browsing engines. The Open Web Advocacy group is trying to pressure Apple to open up iOS browser options, and regulators have taken note of Apple’s stance as a possible antitrust issue.

    If Apple is ever forced to ease its restrictions, Google will already have a head start on releasing a full-fledged Chrome browser for iOS.

  • Open Web Advocacy Is Taking On #AppleBrowserBan

    Open Web Advocacy Is Taking On #AppleBrowserBan

    A new organization is trying to challenge Apple, calling for the company to allow third-party browser engines on iOS.

    The Open Web Advocacy (OWA) is a group of developers who want Apple to crack open its walled garden, at least in the context of iOS browsers. While iOS has a number of browsers on the App Store, Apple does now allow those browsers to use their own rendering engines. Instead all of them are required to use the same engine that powers Safari. Whether a user prefers Firefox, Brave, Opera, Chrome, or anything else, they’re essentially just using a differently themed version of Apple’s native browser.

    The OWA wants to challenge the status quo, calling on “regulatory or legislative change” to help ensure the open nature of the web, and protect the ability of developers to use technologies to “write once, deploy anywhere.”

    The OWA says the #AppleBrowserBan makes development far more costly, and inhibits developers’ ability to easily create cross-platform applications.

    Critically this browser ban prevents the emergence of an open and free universal platform for apps, where developers can build their application once and have it work across all consumer devices, be it desktop, laptop, tablet or phone. Instead it forces companies to create multiple separate applications to run on each platform, significantly raising the cost and complexity of development and maintenance. These costs are in addition to the 15% 30% tax charged by the App Store. This greater cost is ultimately passed on to consumers in the form of higher fees, more bug prone applications and the applications not being available on all platforms.

    It remains to be seen if the OWA will be able to gain serious traction, although founding members of the group have already been interviewed in major publications. In the current climate, the group certainly has a much better chance than they would have several years ago.