Apple Will Let Developers Respond To Reviews On App Store

If you browse app reviews on the Google Play store, you're likely to see some reviews that have responses from the app's developer. That's a great way to get more clarity on a potential issue or pending feature, but one that has thus far not been provided to iOS users. That'll be changing soon, with Apple revealing that it'll allow developers to response to app reviews on the App Store.

Apple revealed the news in its recent documentation for developers, saying the app response support will be available when iOS version 10.3 ships to customers. The dev beta was released to developers today, revealing features that include, among other things, the ability to track your AirPods' location.

The change is a welcomed — and long requested — one, enabling developers to shed light on things users may talk about in reviews. It is beneficial to users, too, enabling them to read the developer's response and make their own decisions about the user review and the product.

The documentation also says that developers will be able to solicit reviews and ratings from users in a new way, namely asking them to rate or review the app while they're still using it and without navigating away from the app to the App Store. The developers will get to choose at what point during the user's app usage they'll be prompted to provide a rating or review.