Apple has revised its Developer Program License Agreement to include new regulations concerning how third-party accessories are to manage forwarded notifications and Live Activities. This revision arises from the introduction of new functionalities in iOS 26.5 beta 1, which indicates forthcoming Live Activities compatibility for third-party accessories in the EU, in alignment with the interoperability stipulations of the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
The DMA requires that third-party accessories have the capability to display iPhone notifications, a feature that will be reserved exclusively for users in the EU. Apple has voiced apprehensions that the DMA might introduce privacy and security threats, as it permits other entities to seek access to sensitive user information, encompassing the full content of notifications.
In light of these regulatory amendments, Apple has instituted stringent guidelines within its Developer Program License Agreement. The newly added section, named “Accessory Notifications Framework and Accessory Live Activities Framework,” delineates several critical prohibitions:
1. Third parties are barred from utilizing forwarded data for advertising, profiling, model training, or location tracking.
2. Accessories must not disseminate this information or the related encryption keys to any additional device, including the owner’s iPhone.
3. The substance of notifications must not be modified in any manner that alters its interpretation, save for necessary display modifications.
4. Developers are prohibited from remotely storing this data, such as on cloud storage, unless absolutely essential for delivering it to the accessory.
5. Decryption of the information must take place exclusively on the accessory itself.
Furthermore, Apple has made it clear that apps are not required to facilitate this system for data sharing with third-party accessories, as this will be governed by a user-level configuration.
For additional details, you can refer to Apple’s revised Developer Program License Agreement [here](https://developer.apple.com/support/terms/apple-developer-program-license-agreement/).