> This is entirely unrelated to a company linking accounts between their apps and their website, which is entirely uncontroversial and has been for as long as t

> This is entirely unrelated to a company linking accounts between their apps and their website, which is entirely uncontroversial and has been for as long as there have been apps on iPhones. I mean, how else is a Gmail app supposed to be consistent with the website? The policy applies whether or not your app uses accounts. Software licensing can be as simple as "you pay us, we email you a link which will launch the app and apply your license key." But not if you're using this new special linking flow. If someone clicks the purchase button in your app to go to your website, decides not to purchase it, then 6 days later they navigate back to your website from Google or a link that a friend sent them and they decide to buy it that time, Apple will expect you to have tracked that they used the in-app link a week ago so that you can pay them. You might prefer not to track customers browsing your website (for example, you might avoid using cookies so that you aren't required to plaster a cookie consent banner on every page) but Apple says too bad. How will Apple enforce this? I have no idea. But to get permission to use external purchase links you have to agree to pay Apple 27% on purchases with 7 days of clicking it and give Apple permission to audit your accounting of those purchases.