App developer Jeremy Provost has discovered that Apple has given Zoom access to a private iPad camera API, making the video meeting app the only one, aside from Apple's FaceTime, that can use the camera during iPad Split View multitasking.
Since this feature is only available in the Zoom app, it gives the app an edge among the others as the user can use split-view multitasking to access Twitter, a note-taking app, etc. As Provost explains in his blog post explained, when he discovered that Zoom could take advantage of the split-view feature, he began looking for a way for other developers to do the same.
Right or privilege: Apple itself must grant permission
We asked Zoom and to our surprise, they gave us the answer, revealing a seemingly private process available only to those deemed worthy by Apple.
To gain access to a particular API, Apple must grant a "permission," which is a right or privilege that grants an executable file certain capabilities. Apple explains:
For example, an app needs the HomeKit entitlement - along with the user's explicit consent - to access a user's home automation network. An app stores its permissions as key-value pairs embedded in the code signature of its executable binary.
Apple: “All developers are treated equally”
While Apple provides public documentation and a process for requesting access to Entitlements, Provost noted that there is no public process for requesting this specific API.
We're told it's called com.apple.developer.avfoundation.multitasking-camera-access. Unfortunately, unlike CarPlay, there's no public process for requesting this permission. In fact, its existence isn't even publicly documented by Apple. Feel free to google it, and you'll only find the Zoom Developer Forum.
So it remains unknown why Apple only made this special feature available to the Zoom app. The company itself has said that it treats all developers equally. (Photo by Improvisor / Bigstockphoto)
