Is there an alternative to Apple Push Notifications for a server to inform an iOS app some new data is available?

Question

Is Apple Push Notifications the only way to go when you need the server side of the app to inform that something interesting for the app is available in the server?

If no, does it change if the app just need to get informed when in the foreground?

Answer 1

If your application is running in the foreground, you can use whatever mechanism you fancy—With the caveat that you have to implement it yourself.

If however, you require the ability to bring your app to the foreground upon some condition, then yeah, you will need push notifications.