European Regulators Awaiting Response From Apple After Spotify Called the App Store a Monopoly

The European Commission is awaiting a response from Apple after Spotify accused the iPhone maker of anticompetitive business practices in relation to its App Store, said the European Union's antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager.

apple spotify
"We are looking into that and we have been asking questions around in that market but of course also Apple themselves, for them to answer the allegations. And when they come back, we will know more," said Vestager, speaking on the sidelines of an economic conference, according to Reuters.

In March, Spotify announced it had filed an antitrust complaint against Apple with the European Commission over unfair ‌App Store‌ practices. Apple responded two days later, labeling the complaint as "misleading rhetoric" and arguing that "Spotify wants all the benefits of a free app without being free."

In a blog post, Spotify founder and CEO Daniel Ek took particular issue with Apple charging a 30 percent "tax" on ‌App Store‌ purchases. This results in Spotify charging existing subscribers $12.99 per month for its Premium plan via the ‌App Store‌ just to collect nearly the $9.99 per month it charges normally.

Apple also forbids developers from alerting users that they can sign up for a subscription or complete a purchase outside of an app, which would bypass Apple's commission on in-app purchases tied to digital goods.

Spotify later said "every monopolist will suggest they have done nothing wrong" and that Apple's response was "entirely in line" with its expectations.

Apple has faced increasing scrutiny as of late over the way it runs its ‌App Store‌, beyond Spotify's complaint. In the United States, for example, the Supreme Court recently ruled that a class action lawsuit accusing Apple of operating an App Store monopoly can proceed to trial in a lower court.

Parental control app developers have also petitioned Apple to release a public API for its Screen Time feature to ensure a fair playing field on the ‌App Store‌, while the Netherlands is investigating whether or not Apple favors its own apps.

In response, Apple added a new page to the ‌App Store‌ section of its website titled Principles and Practices, noting that the ‌App Store‌ was created with two goals: to be "a safe and trusted place for customers to discover and download apps" and "a great business opportunity for all developers."

apple apps vs third party apps
Apple emphasized that the App Store "welcomes competition" and listed many examples of third-party apps that compete with its own apps, such as Spotify versus Apple Music and Google Maps versus Apple Maps.

We believe competition makes everything better and results in the best apps for our customers.

We also care about quality over quantity, and trust over transactions. That's why, even though other stores have more users and more app downloads, the App Store earns more money for developers. Our users trust Apple — and that trust is critical to how we operate a fair, competitive store for developer app distribution.

The deadline for Apple's response to the European Commission is unclear.

Top Rated Comments

Appleman3546 Avatar
50 months ago
Apple: “we welcome competition”...but you have no other choice on how to distribute your app.
Apple: “we welcome competition”...if you pay our 30% cut so that we can still profit off of that competition
Apple: “we welcome competition”...but we don’t allow other app stores or browser downloads to compete with us
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BootsWalking Avatar
50 months ago
Here's the bottom line: If Apple's App Store is as good as Apple claims, including their assertions of value, security, and convenience, then let it stand on its own merit and allow consumers decide with their wallets rather than forbidding them from even considering alternative app distribution models.

I do agree having an app approval process does provide a good measure of quality control and protection for users so here's what I propose - have a voluntary app certification program where developers can submit their apps to Apple, which would then undergo the same process as current App Store approval but allow those certified apps to be signed as "Apple Certified" and distributed elsewhere. Apple could charge a significant premium for this service. This would allow developers to choose which economic model they want - for small developers it would make sense to avoid the certification fee and infrastructure costs by using the App Store, whereas larger developers could use the certification program and distribute apps on their own.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
truthertech Avatar
50 months ago
If it is a monopoly, Apple must be the most incompetent monopoler in history as they have allowed Spotify to use the App store to grow so large that it is now, by far, the largest music streaming business in the world! In fact, Spotify dwarfs #2 Apple, having about 217 million users compared to Apple's reported about 60 million.

What's even more pathetic by Apple is that they have spent billions building and spend billions maintaining the App store and supporting ecosystem, only to allow Spotify to use the App Store for essentially free to have access to about a BILLION customers. Yep, that's right, Spotify, a company now worth close to 30 BILLION dollars is portrayed by much of the media as the underdog.

The media rarely reports the facts, but Spotify has to pay a commission to Apple for only a small fraction of its over 200 MILLION customers. Instead, Spotify takes in billions from ad revenue and keeps 100% of those dollars. Also, Spotify signs up many of its customers directly and again, Apple doesn't get a cent from those. Finally, for the small fraction of customers that Spotify has to pay Apple a commission for, the vast majority of those are 15%, not the 30% universally reported.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JM Avatar
50 months ago
So why doesn’t Spotify just pull their app from the AppStore? They obviously don’t think it’s a fair situation. They should create their own Spotify smartphone.

Don’t whine to the government to fix things for you. Be creative and competitive. It’s fair to remove the opportunity to subscribe through the Spotify app on iPhones. That makes people go to website to subscribe. What’s the big deal? Wahhhh.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MaxGravy Avatar
50 months ago
It's a monappley!
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Number 41 Avatar
50 months ago
Apple isn't even a majority of the industry it operates in.

Try again, Spotify.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 15 Pro Buttons CAD Leak

iPhone 15 Pro Leak Reveals Unified Volume Button and Mute Button

Monday March 20, 2023 8:33 am PDT by
As previously rumored, the next-generation iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max will feature a unified volume button and a mute button, according to leaked CAD images shared in a video on the Chinese version of TikTok and posted to Twitter by ShrimpApplePro. Instead of separate buttons for volume up and volume down, the iPhone 15 Pro models are expected to have a single elongated button for...
original iphone auction

Factory-Sealed Original iPhone Sells for $55,000 at Auction

Friday March 17, 2023 1:08 pm PDT by
A first-generation iPhone still sealed inside its box sold for $54,904 at auction, which is more than $54,000 over the original $599 price tag of the device when it was released in 2007. The original iPhone was put up for sale by RR Auction on behalf of a former Apple employee who purchased it back when it first came out. Back in February, an original, sealed iPhone sold for over $63,000,...
iPhone 12 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro Feature

iPhone 12 Pro vs. 15 Pro: New Features to Expect if You've Waited to Upgrade

Friday March 17, 2023 10:29 am PDT by
While year-over-year iPhone upgrades are not always groundbreaking, new features can begin to stack up over multiple generations. For example, the iPhone 15 Pro will be a notable upgrade for those who still have a three-year-old iPhone 12 Pro. If you are still using an iPhone 12 Pro and are considering upgrading to the iPhone 15 Pro when it launches later this year, we have put together a...
top stories 18mar2023

Top Stories: iPhone 15 Pro Pricing, New iOS 16.4 Beta, Siri vs. ChatGPT, and More

Saturday March 18, 2023 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's high-end iPhone models have started at $999 in the U.S. since they first launched back in 2017 with the iPhone X, but could this finally be the year that starting price sees an increase? This week also saw some more rumors about Apple's upcoming headset and the company's explorations in the booming AI industry as well as the release of a new round of beta updates, so read on for all...
iPhone 15 Pro Mock Feature Buttonless

iPhone 15 Pro Max to 'Break Record' for Thinnest Bezels on a Smartphone

Friday March 17, 2023 2:59 am PDT by
The iPhone 15 Pro Max will have the thinnest bezels of any smartphone, beating the record currently held by the Xiaomi 13. That's according to the leaker known as "Ice Universe," who has divulged accurate information about Apple's plans in the past. Both iPhone 15 Pro models are expected to have thinner, curved bezels compared to the iPhone 14 Pro, potentially resulting in an Apple...
iphone 14 pro max deep purple feature purple

iPhone 15 Pro Launching This Year With These 11 New Features

Monday March 13, 2023 6:47 am PDT by
While the iPhone 15 lineup is around six months away, there have already been plenty of rumors about the devices. Many new features and changes are expected for the iPhone 15 Pro models in particular, including a titanium frame and more. Below, we have recapped 11 features rumored for iPhone 15 Pro models that are not expected to be available on the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus:A17...
iOS 16

iOS 16.4 for iPhone Nearing Launch With These 5 New Features

Monday March 20, 2023 11:50 am PDT by
Apple continues to test iOS 16.4, which includes a handful of new features and changes for the iPhone. Below, we have recapped five new features coming with the software update, including new emoji, push notifications from websites, and more. Apple says iOS 16.4 will be available in the spring, which begins today. In his newsletter this weekend, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the update should ...