Ionic announced its support for Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) in both Ionic 1 and Ionic 2, emphasizing the ease of creating PWAs with built-in features like manifests and service workers. This development allows users to build apps that offer an app-like experience via a URL without needing app store downloads. Ionic now provides a default manifest in new apps to handle app metadata, while a minimal service worker script is included to facilitate offline capabilities and other network functionalities. Users are encouraged to customize their service workers to enhance functionality, with Ionic planning future improvements such as server-side rendering and automatic service worker configuration to further streamline PWA development. The announcement reflects Ionic's commitment to supporting modern web technologies and enhancing user experience by integrating PWA features directly into its framework.