Apple plans to merge iOS and macOS apps by 2021, report says

For years, Apple has been bringing its mobile, desktop and tablet platforms closer together. Features like Handoff and Continuity Camera make it easier to start working on an iPhone and continue on the Mac, for example.

But the company still keeps Mac, iPhone, and (to some extent) iPad apps separate. In 2021, this might change. According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple plans to enable developers to create apps that work on all of the company's major platforms.

The report says the initiative is aimed at further encouraging app development.

If the report is accurate, the move could be a huge relief for developers and a big change for users. For example, it would mean that Apple's App Store and the macOS App Store would effectively be merged into one.

Bloomberg first reported on the initiative, codenamed Marzipan, in Dec. 2017, but then it was supposed to go live as early as 2018. Apple itself mentioned Marzipan at its WWDC conference in 2018, but there was no official word of it since. The new report says Apple's launch window is now 2021, though Bloomberg's sources say Apple's plans are fluid and could change.

It's important to note that this does not mean that macOS and iOS will become a single operating system; the two OSes will remain separate.

Apple's WWDC conference is likely to happen in early June this year; we might hear more about the initiative then. Bloomberg also said the company might preview its new Mac Pro, which is scheduled for launch this year, during WWDC 2019.