Distribute Ipad App without app store

Question

Supposing the following scenario: Company A asks company B to produce an IPad App for them. Company A only wants to use it for themselves on a very limited amount of IPads (less than 100). Company A is not necessarily interested in offering it on the app store.

How can company B distribute the app (sell it) to company A? It could install the App on the iPads via ad hoc provisioning profile, but this is only meant for testing and the app can't be used once the profile expires. How can B legally install this app on the iPads without the app expiring after one year?

When using the app store, is there an option to sell the app only to this company, or to specific users via the app store, when the companies are not located in the U.S. (I heard about B2B distribution which can only be used in the U.S.)

Would the enterprise distribution be the option to choose? But then company A must have an IOS developer enterprise program ticket, so that it can install the app on its iPads, and not company B, right? Yet company B is the developer here... Or would it be legal, if company B had the IOS developer enterprise program ticket, installed the app on some iPads and sold the iPads to company A?

Answer 1

Company A can participate in the enterprise developer program and install proprietary apps on any of their devices freely:

https://developer.apple.com/programs/ios/enterprise/

Note: I've worked on several proprietary apps that we simply released through the app store at a price that would prevent others from purchasing it. It's the easiest way for the client's employees to get the app on their device and it has resulted in new business for us when others have seen what we've done.

Answer 2

Enterprise distribution is exactly what you want in this situation.