Apple's New Guidelines Permit NFTs But There's a Caveat

Apple’s New Guidelines Permit NFTs But There’s a Caveat

The App Store is one of the largest program hosting platforms in the world, and recently Apple Inc., an American multinational technology company, amended its criteria to allow apps published on its platform to use Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs).

This may seem like huge news, what with all the publicity this opens up for app and developer NFT integration, but Apple’s standards do include restrictions. The revised recommendation now states;

UK High Court Orders PGI Global To Shut Down For Defrauding Investors

October 31, 2022

Elon Musk Dissolves Twitter’s 9-person Board of Directors to Become the Only Director

October 31, 2022

“Apps may use in-app purchase to sell and sell services related to non-fungible tokens (NFTs), such as minting, listing, and transferring. Apps may allow users to view their own NFTs, provided that NFT ownership does not unlock features or functionality within the app. Apps may allow users to browse NFT collections owned by others, provided that the apps may not include buttons, external links, or other calls to action that direct customers to purchasing mechanisms other than in-app purchase.”

The update has both positive and negative aspects, as the app’s restricted features may make it difficult for its creators to attract as many users as possible.

Over the past year, the number of tech companies, especially in the social media sphere, that are actively supporting the rise of NFTs as an offshoot of blockchain technology has increased steadily. Twitter only started allowing NFT owners to use NFTs as profile images earlier this year, whereas Reddit has already developed its own NFT collection.

Meta Platforms, Facebook’s parent company, has introduced support for NFTs across some of its applications, including Instagram. These developments help publicize the potential inherent in the technology.

Since the vast majority of these apps are available through the App Store, the new Apple permission will significantly aid in advancing their adoption; developers can consider this a gain despite the restrictions that do apply.