Apple allegedly manipulates App Store search. It's not true, society is defending itself

Everyone accuses Apple of unfair practices on the App Store. Recently, the editor of The Wall Street Journal, Tripp Mickle, did the same, who stated that the Cupertino company prioritizes its own applications over third-party software in App Store searches. Apple, of course, denied the allegation, and the company's claim was soon confirmed based on testing on several devices.

Tripp v one of his articles said this week that mobile apps from Apple's workshop routinely appear at the top of search results in the App Store ahead of the competition. He cited some basic apps like maps as an example, adding that when searching for those basic terms, Apple apps come up 95 percent of the time, and subscription-based services like Apple Music are even XNUMX% of the time.

Magazine AppleInsider however, he points out that factors such as the number of downloads of the given application, user reviews and overall rating have an influence on the shape of the search results. Searches in the App Store also work based on an algorithm, which, however, Apple refuses to specify due to concerns about possible manipulations. For example, machine learning or previous user preferences play a role here. According to Apple, a total of forty-two factors influence search results, with user behavior being one of the most important.

Even the editors of AppleInsider, who conducted testing on a total of three devices, could not confirm Tripp's claim. In 56 out of a total of 60 cases, applications other than those from Apple appeared in the search results immediately below the ad. Among other things, the search results in Tripp's case could have been influenced by the fact that the Apple applications in question also had the subject of the search (News, Maps, Podcasts) in the title.

Apple said in its official statement that it created the App Store to be a safe and trusted place where users can discover and download applications, and which will also become a place of commerce for developers. The company has stated that the App Store's sole purpose is to provide users with what they are looking for. According to Apple, the search algorithm changes along with how the company tries to improve the search method as much as possible, and works the same for all applications without exception.

Tripp also said in his report that roughly two dozen Apple apps preinstalled on iOS devices are "protected from reviews and ratings." Apple responded to this accusation by arguing that pre-installed apps do not need to be evaluated because they are part of iOS.