Apple‘s recent iOS 18 update has introduced a privacy feature that’s causing alarm among social app developers. The change, which gives users more control over their contact sharing, could potentially hinder the growth of new social networking apps.
The update modifies how apps request access to users’ contacts. Instead of an all-or-nothing approach, users can now select specific contacts to share with each app.While this change enhances user privacy, it has led to a significant decrease in contact sharing, according to industry insiders.
“Some developers are worried that they may struggle to get new apps off the ground,” reported Kevin Roose in The New York Times. Nikita Bier, a start-up founder and adviser, told the Times that the iOS 18 changes could be “the end of the world” for new friend-based social apps, potentially rendering them “dead on arrival.”
Data from start-ups suggests that contact sharing has dropped dramatically since the update. Some apps have seen up to a 25% increase in users sharing 10 or fewer contacts, the New York Times reported. This decline could severely impact the ability of new social apps to quickly connect users with their friends, a crucial factor in an app’s early success.
“It’s critical to form density on an early-stage app,” Bier explained to the Times. “People don’t wait around for a week for all their friends to sign up.”
The change doesn’t affect Apple’s own services, such as iMessage, which has raised concerns about anticompetitive practices. Some developers see this as an example of self-preferencing that could attract regulatory scrutiny.
Despite these concerns, Apple maintains that the update is beneficial for user privacy. The company argues that users shouldn’t be forced to share their entire contact list and that the change might actually increase contact sharing among users who previously declined to share any contacts.
