Major Russian retailers, including VimpelCom (Beeline), began placing marks on Apple product cards at the end of August 2024 indicating the absence of the RuStore app store. This is due to the entry into force on September 1 of new regulatory requirements for the pre-installation of mandatory software on smartphones and tablets.
In the online stores of VimpelCom, as well as on the Ozon and Wildberries marketplaces, the descriptions of iPhone and iPad include the characteristics "without RuStore" and "RuStore is not installed and does not work." According to the company's press service, this measure is aimed at informing customers before the purchase. The Ozon marketplace announced that from September 1, it will introduce a special attribute for sellers: "Mandatory programs are pre-installed."
From September 1, 2024, a government decree comes into force, obliging the pre-installation of the RuStore app store on all smartphones sold in Russia, including iOS devices. At the same time, amendments to the law "On Protection of Consumer Rights" come into force, according to which the inability to install mandatory software is considered a defect in the goods.
Other major retailers, such as MTS, Megafon, M.Video, and T2 Mobile, did not place similar marks on product cards as of August 25. Their representatives did not provide prompt responses.
RuStore is an app store developed by VK group. Technical pre-installation of RuStore on Apple devices requires changes at the operating system level, which can only be carried out by the smartphone manufacturer.