App using virtual audio driver allowed in app store?

Does Apple allow MacOS applications (referred to as the control app) to be offered through the app store when the application:


  1. Installs a virtual audio driver (virtual speaker and virtual microphone) on the user's system.
  2. Enables 3rd party apps to send their speaker audio to the virtual speaker for processing (noise reduction). The virtual speaker code then routes the processed audio to a physical speaker which the user has selected in the control app.
  3. Enables 3rd party apps to connect to and receive microphone audio from the virtual microphone. The virtual microphone code acquires the microphone audio from a physical microphone that the user has selected in the control app. The microphone audio is processed by the control app before it is handed over to the 3rd party app via the virtual microphone.


The application may also use XPC to facilitate communication between the control app and the driver code.


An example of this type of application is Krisp (https://krisp.ai/)


I noticed that Krisp's app isn't published on the app store. Instead you have to download it from krisp's website. So that made me wonder if there is anything in Apple's app store policies that prevents Krisp from publishing their app in the app store?


Thanks.

Posted on Aug 19, 2021 1:04 PM

Reply
1 reply

Aug 20, 2021 8:38 PM in response to audioalgorithms

It is probably more of a technical restriction. App Store apps can only use official Apple APIs. If no official API exists for a certain functionality, then an app can’t do that in the store.


Something like a virtual audio driver would need administrator-level authorization to install. That is also not allowed in the store.


And finally, such an app could be used to circumvent copyright protection, and that too is not allowed in the store.


All that being said, you may be able to find apps that do all of that in the store. That doesn’t mean you would be allowed to do it.

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App using virtual audio driver allowed in app store?

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