The European Commission (EC) will bring charges against Apple this week for abuse of power in the App Store, reports the Financial Times Tuesday based on initiates.
Music service Spotify complained to the EC two years ago because the company has to pay a 30% commission on revenue through the App Store. That’s why Spotify needs to make its App Store subscriptions more expensive to keep the same revenue. Also, the company is not permitted to refer people to the Spotify site for lower prices. The EC therefore initiated an investigation.
Other companies also disagree with the installment requested by Apple. Netflix has spoken out against this earlier as well. Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, sued Apple for its monopoly position in the United States. Apple released Fortnite from its App Store when Epic created its own in-game payment system.
Apple still defends its App Store, saying the fees are necessary to ensure user safety and privacy, among other things. However, the company has recently adjusted its policy slightly. For example, some video streaming services are exempt from the commission, and developers who earn less than $ 1 million (around $ 820,000) per year through the App Store only have to pay 15%.
It is not known what the conclusion of the EC investigation is and when Brussels will lay the charges. the Financial Times it will end “later this week”.