There's been a lot of antitrust scrutiny of Apple's App Store policies of late. But now the walls are beginning to crumble.

Apple just announced relaxed rules for certain "reader" apps, and other changes are sure to follow.

Allowing third-party payment systems seems the next likely unwinding, given a new South Korean law that likely will be copied by other countries.

Sideloading and alternative app stores may follow.

This is all good news for Apple users. The company's tight control, while affording certain benefits, has stymied developers and publishers.

We're at the beginning of a new era, and I'm excited for it.

-- Leander Kahney, EIC.

Apple agrees to relax App Store rules for ‘reader’ apps like Netflix, Spotify — www.cultofmac.com

The changes will affect apps that let users access previously purchased content and subscriptions for books, magazines, music and more.

We may not be waiting long for delayed Apple Watch Series 7 — www.cultofmac.com

A new report says Apple will ramp up production of this year's smartwatch in late September.

Apple readies processor to power future VR headset — www.cultofmac.com

Apple is almost ready to send the chip that’ll be at the heart of its virtual reality headset to production, according to an unconfirmed report.

Locast shuts down after losing big court battle — www.cultofmac.com

The streaming service gave users access to their local TV stations over the internet. The networks said Locast violated copyrights, and a court agreed.

Take AirTag for a ride and track your bike with these Laut mounts — www.cultofmac.com

If you love your AirTag sooo much that you take it on romantic bike rides (or, more likely, you just want to track your sweet ride), check out these brilliant bike mounts from Laut. They’re well-designed and wonderfully affordable.

Call off the lawyers: Ted Lasso's biscuits have arrived in Wales — www.cultofmac.com

On August 23, we reported on the brutal tongue-in-cheek legal battle set to break out between Apple TV+ and actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney over a joke in an episode of Ted Lasso. And now we’re back with a breaking update: The biscuits have arrived.

Drive 4 displays and more with StarTech’s capable new Quad Monitor Dock — www.cultofmac.com

This USB-C dock drives up to four displays at 60Hz apiece and offers six other ports to turn your computer into a powerhouse.

Make your Mac more versatile with Kensington’s new multiport hubs — www.cultofmac.com

Kensington brought out two new USB-C hubs this week featuring up to 100W passthrough charging and as high as 4K 60Hz HDMI connectivity (along with other features).

Tweet o' the day

One more thing ...

"And it comes from saying no to 1,000 things to make sure we don't get on the wrong track or try to do too much. We're always thinking about new markets we could enter, but it's only by saying no that you can concentrate on the things that are really important." -- Steve Jobs