Licensing iOS apps

Apple App Store Guidelines

Many software publishers want to distribute their iOS apps through the Apple App Store, but if they want to use a third-party licensing or sales solution (such as the SoftwareKey System), this is not allowed per Apple's guidelines:

• 11.1 Apps that unlock or enable additional features or functionality with mechanisms other than the App Store will be rejected
• 11.13 Apps that link to external mechanisms for purchases or subscriptions to be used in the App, such as a "buy" button that goes to a web site to purchase a digital book, will be rejected

Apple wants to enforce its 30% cut of sales made through the App Store, and they are willing to take extreme measures to combat any software publisher who tries to bypass this. A notable example is the case of Epic Games v. Apple. If your application is removed from the App Store, that limits your options for deploying your iOS app to customers.

While it is possible to side-load apps onto iOS devices without using the App Store, this process has various caveats and is unsuited for many cases. For lower volume cases or instances when you can install your application for the customer, side-loading may be a potential option your company could investigate.