U.S. and European Regulators 'Looking At' Apple's App Store Subscriptions Program
Earlier this week, we noted that some observers were expressing concern over potential antitrust issues related to Apple's new App Store subscription program that forces content providers to at least offer users the option of subscribing through Apple's in-app subscriptions, which sees the company taking a 30% cut of revenue. The program also comes with restrictions preventing developers from including links to external subscription signup options within their apps and offering lower prices outside of their apps.
Any antitrust issues are likely to hinge on how the market addressed by in-app subscriptions is defined, and thus whether Apple is considered to hold a sufficiently dominant position in it that regulators might be interested in stepping in. According to The Wall Street Journal, several regulatory agencies in the United States and Europe have begun "looking at" Apple's subscription program, although the inquiries are still in an early stage that may not proceed to a formal investigation.
U.S. antitrust enforcers have begun looking at the terms Apple Inc. set this week for media companies who want to sell their content on its popular iPad and other devices, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission's interest in Apple's new subscription service is at a preliminary stage, and might not develop into either a formal investigation or any action against the company. But it comes as Apple has attracted growing antitrust scrutiny in the U.S. and Europe.
A spokeswoman for the European Commission, the European Union's executive arm, said Thursday that the commission was aware of the new subscription service and was "carefully monitoring the situation."
Top Rated Comments
(View all)
If you remember, before the iPhone the phone companies would charge for even the most basic features on the phone "GPS for $10.00 per month" Once phones could download apps without the phone companies approval all of those services became free.
iPhone Apps were a trojan horse for the phone companies.
Now Apple is getting it's door kicked in by Apps that offer services that compete with Apple at a lower price.
iPhone Apps are a trojan horse for Apple.
Question is... ? why don't they go after Sony for the PS3 or Microsoft for the Xbox not allowing ANY SERVICE/APP/FEATURE. Will Sony Allow iTunes on the PS3?? Nope. It would hurt their PSstore.
I don't think they can pick and choose who they go after.
From there, it's up to the end user to choose where they purchase. No harm, no foul.
The company (Fortune 500 company) I work for had to scrap the app we were bringing to the App store because of the terms. We have now moved on to Android.
That's the problem here, in the end the consumer will lose. Big applications like Pandora will cease to exist on iOS, and Apple will lose market share.
It's funny.. Apple kicked open the door to the phone companies with the iPhone.
If you remember, before the iPhone the phone companies would charge for even the most basic features on the phone "GPS for $10.00 per month"
iPhone Apps were a trojan horse for the phone companies.
Now Apple is getting it's door kicked in by Apps that offer services that compete with Apple at a lower price.
iPhone Apps are a trojan horse for Apple.
steve jobs did the same thing with the Mac back in the day. he got too greedy back then as well and all the developers went to windows
• One course of action is that many apps. will simply disappear -- Kindle and other eBook readers, magazines that don't want to use this system, even Hulu Plus, Netflix, Crunchyroll -- the list goes on and on. ANY app. developer who allows users to "log in" to their app. to get premium content that the user has paid for outside the app. is potentially subject to this policy. Many of them will simply leave the platform, because they can not give Apple ALL of their profit, or MORE than their profit. This is bad for users of iOS -- the reason we love the platform is due to these types of apps, for a large part!
• The other option is that these types of providers will raise their prices ACROSS THE BOARD, in-app. and outside of the apps. (as Apple requires the same pricing levels across the board), so whether or not you are even a user of iOS, you will end up paying more for your Kindle eBooks, your Netflix subscription, etc. HORRIBLE.
This was one of the most bone-headed things I've ever seen Apple do, especially as it disrespects their users, and developers. They are getting cocky, and this is what led to many years of the Mac platform dwindling, allowing Windows to utterly take over. These are very new types of platforms, and there's still plenty of time for Apple to lose their position.
I for one know that I will NOT be buying iOS apps. that might fall into this category, until this situation is rectified.
Not really surprising.
Apple may have gone too far this time.
Exactly. 30% Commission on digital subscription? Anyone who believe this would be good for consumers ought to have their brains examined.
[ Read All Comments ]
Apple today released Digital Camera RAW Compatibility Update 3.10, bringing RAW image support to Aperture and iPhoto for a number of new cameras.
This update adds RAW image compatibility for the...
As noted by ifoAppleStore, Apple is continuing its trickle of retail store openings this week with a new location opening on Friday, May 25 in Paris. The new Les Quatre Temps store will be...
TiVo owners can control their devices via an iOS app on the iPhone and iPad, but -- for the moment -- can only watch shows on their television.
But that's all going to change in a few months....
Binary Nights has dropped the price of its file-transfer app ForkLift to $0.99, down from $29.99, for a limited time.
ForkLift is a well-reviewed file management app that offers FTP, SFTP,...
Our sister-site TouchArcade notes that Chillingo's excellent physics puzzler Feed Me Oil is free today for both the iPhone and iPad. It's normally $0.99 for iPhone and $1.99 for iPad....
