Windows has an app store too and because there is a vibrant market for paid third party applications [particularly B2B] it is not so onerous on developers. It's not the primary channel to reach users.
Apple has a gatekeeper model because many years ago it shifted to the view that money users spent on third party software was coming out of their bottom line.
Apple has a gatekeeper model because many years ago it shifted to the view that money users spent on third party software was coming out of their bottom line.