https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/03/apple-to-allow-ios-app-installs-from-websites-but-small-devs-dont-qualify/

Apple will let European app developers distribute iPhone and iPad applications to users directly from a website, instead of through an app store. It's the latest app-installation option announced by Apple as it seeks to comply with new European rules, but this one will only be available to developers who had an app installed by over 1 million users the previous year.

In an announcement today, Apple said it plans to introduce "a new way to distribute apps directly from a developer's website." The Web Distribution option will become available after a software update "later this spring," letting developers "distribute their iOS apps to EU users directly from a website owned by the developer."