Google Cast could be coming to the iPhone as Apple’s walled garden cracks further

• Driven by the EU’s Digital Markets Act, Apple’s upcoming iOS 27 update will reportedly support third-party media-casting protocols, allowing users to set alternatives, such as Google Cast, as the default.
• This shift could eliminate the need for TV makers to pay Apple AirPlay licensing fees and will make cheaper Google Cast-supported streaming sticks highly compatible with iPhones.
• While the changes are designed to comply with EU rules, it remains unclear whether Apple will restrict this media-casting feature to the EU or roll it out globally.

Thanks to legislation passed by the EU under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), Apple has had to slowly open up its walled garden, even if just in the EU. The company began allowing alternative app stores on iOS, allowing emulators on the App Store, and diluted its anti-steering rules for developers. There are more changes in the pipeline, with the next big one possibly opening iOS to alternative media-casting protocols, paving the way for Google Cast support on the iPhone.

Bloomberg reports that the upcoming iOS 27 update will enable the iPhone to support AirPlay alternatives by default to meet the EU’s requirements under the DMA. Apple is said to be building support for third-party media-casting protocols, which would allow outside services like Google Cast to be set by users as the default solution for beaming video, photos, and audio from an Apple device to a Google Cast-supported speaker or TV.