The abandonment of PWAs, a sort of “hybrid” between a website and a real app, took place with the launch of iOS 17.4 (for now still in Beta) and is a consequence of the obligation imposed by the EU to allow third-party web browsers to use the engine of their choice, not necessarily Apple’s own WebKit.
The Cupertino company basically said that all the advanced features of PWAs on the iPhone are closely linked to WebKit, and that making third-party browsers compatible would require the development of an entire infrastructure from scratch, an effort judged too great considering the other demands of the EU and the DMA and the very low adoption by users.
Starting with iOS 17.4, therefore, and of course only for European users, PWAs will be exactly like any other favorite placed in the Home: they cannot receive notifications and do not work offline, unlike what was previously the case.
The European Commission, for its part, has said that it is examining Apple’s move, but that more generally it is doing so with all the measures announced by the so-called “gatekeepers” to be in compliance. However, in this specific case, the Commission confirmed that it had requested specific information and details on PWAs from Apple and third-party app developers.
