The conditions for those alternative stores are so onerous that it's not an effective alternative. There are significant financial costs and every app in that alternative app store has to be notarized by Apple after a security review.

Nobody's really thinking that, here, right?

Uhm yes? You don't have to develop them specifically for iOS, maintain a separate codebase, pay their extortion fees, or need to buy their Computers to develop

On the contrary, the weird rules around alternatives app stores make PWAs a lot more interesting.

the biggest alternative store is the web

the website you use can be an app if well written

"install" is not needed, the bad wording "install" is just a switch to standalone mode from tab view (and get a direct launch button etc.)

by web apps (standalone websites) the browser stays as the running environment on top of OS, the web security model and trust stays intact

competition law will demolish anything with time that hinders web apps

it is sad we have to fight for this to happen

I think under steve jobs apple would have the best web browser beating chrome and they would have converted app store monopoly revenue to other sources of revenue based on excellence, not monopoly