As a “gatekeeper”, Apple must comply with the new European rules by March 7th. It is therefore preparing two different app store variants.

According to Bloomberg, Apple is working on the final details to act as a gatekeeper to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Among other things, Europe forced Apple to open its App Store by allowing “sideloading” on iPhone and iPad models. This has never been a problem on the Mac.

A specific version of the App Store for Europe is being worked on, different from the rest of the world. The deadline for the project is March 7th. Afterwards, fines will be imposed by Europe.

Last week Tim Cook had a meeting with Margrethe Vestager, head of the European Union’s antitrust authority. There she again brought up the need to allow “side loading.”

The goal is to give developers the opportunity to promote their offerings outside of the App Store. In addition, they should also be given the opportunity to use external payment systems.

Europe previously required every electronic device to have a USB-C port. For this reason, Apple has for the first time abandoned its proprietary Lightning port in favor of USB-C on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models.

Apple is also designated by the European Union as a gatekeeper for its Safari browser and iOS operating system. It is not yet clear how Apple will comply with the new rules. Apple argued for exceptions to European rules late last year, but seems to be in agreement across the board.