Apple Fined Another €5 Million Over Dating Apps as Dutch Regulators Say Apple Has 'Refused to Put Forward Any Serious Proposals'

Dutch regulators have levied another fine of €5 million against Apple in a continued dispute over alternative payment systems for dating apps. Apple's total fines have now reached €25 million as regulators assess weekly fines up to a total of €50 million or until Apple satisfies the regulatory requirements.

iOS App Store General Feature Desaturated
In a statement shared with TechCrunch, the Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) says Apple has "refused to put forward any serious proposals" and that "Apple's so-called 'solutions' continue to create too many barriers for dating-app providers."

“In the past week, we did not receive any new proposals from Apple with which they would comply with ACM’s requirements. That is why Apple will have to pay a fifth penalty payment. That means that the total amount of all penalty payments currently stands at 25 million euros.

“We have clearly explained to Apple how they can comply with ACM’s requirements. So far, however, they have refused to put forward any serious proposals. We find Apple’s attitude regrettable, especially so since ACM’s requirements were upheld in court on December 24. Apple’s so-called ‘solutions’ continue to create too many barriers for dating-app providers that wish to use their own payment systems.

“We have established that Apple is a company with a dominant position. That comes with extra responsibilities vis-à-vis its buyers and, more broadly, society at large. Apple must set reasonable conditions for the use of its services. In that context, it cannot abuse its dominant position. Apple’s conditions will thus have to take into account the interests of buyers.”

Apple said in mid-January that it would comply with the ACM's ruling on allowing alternative payment systems, but the company's terms included only reducing its commission on such purchases from the standard 30% to 27%, requiring developers to maintain separate app binaries, and requiring developers to submit monthly records of sales through alternative means to Apple in order to track commissions.

Apple and the ACM clearly have different ideas of what policies will satisfy the requirements of the original ruling, and the two sides appear to remain far apart as the fines against Apple continue to accumulate.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Friday July 4, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are just over two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:Apple logo repositioned: Apple's logo may have a lower position on the back of the iPhone 17 Pro models, compared to previous...
Apple Watch Ultra Night Mode Screen

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Launching Later This Year With Two Key Upgrades

Wednesday July 2, 2025 1:13 pm PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 appears to be nearly over, and it is rumored to feature both satellite connectivity and 5G support. Apple Watch Ultra's existing Night Mode In his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is on track to launch this year with "significant" new features, including satellite connectivity, which would let you...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Max Battery Capacity Leaked

Thursday July 3, 2025 5:40 am PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature the biggest ever battery in an iPhone, according to the Weibo leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post, the leaker listed the battery capacities of the iPhone 11 Pro Max through to the iPhone 16 Pro Max, and added that the iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature a battery capacity of 5,000mAh: iPhone 11 Pro Max: 3,969mAh iPhone 12 Pro Max: 3,687mAh...
airpods pro 2

AirPods Pro 3 to Help Maintain Apple's Place in Earbud Market Amid Increasing Low-Cost Competition

Thursday July 3, 2025 7:25 am PDT by
Apple's position as the dominant force in the global true wireless stereo (TWS) earbud market is expected to continue through 2025, according to Counterpoint Research. The forecast outlines a 3% year-over-year increase in global TWS unit shipments for 2025, signaling a transition from rapid growth to a more mature phase for the category. While Apple is set to remain the leading brand by...
iphone 16 pro models 1

Here's How the iPhone 17 Pro Max Will Compare to the iPhone 17 Pro

Saturday July 5, 2025 1:00 pm PDT by
Apple should unveil the iPhone 17 series in September, and there might be one bigger difference between the Pro and Pro Max models this year. As always, the Pro Max model will be larger than the Pro model:iPhone 17 Pro: 6.3-inch display iPhone 17 Pro Max: 6.9-inch displayGiven the Pro Max is physically larger than the Pro, it has more internal space, allowing for a larger battery and...
apple silicon mac lineup 2024 feature purple m5

Apple's Upcoming Macs Listed in New Report

Thursday July 3, 2025 9:09 am PDT by
AppleInsider's Marko Zivkovic today shared a list of alleged identifiers for future Mac models, which should roll out over the next year or so. The report does not reveal anything too surprising, but it does serve as further evidence that Apple is seemingly working on new models of every Mac, including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro. Apple is...

Top Rated Comments

hagar Avatar
44 months ago
Just pull all dating apps from the Dutch store and call it a day. Then there’s no more market to complain and fight over.
Score: 39 Votes (Like | Disagree)
icanhazmac Avatar
44 months ago

Just pull all dating apps from the Dutch store and call it a day. Then there’s no more market to complain and fight over.
Agreed, take a stand here before this crap gets out of hand.

Apple's response should be: "unfortunately due to the complexities of international law we can no longer provide dating app services via our app store" and provide links for the citizens of country X to complain to their government representatives.

My condolences to any and all Dutch singles.
Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bollman Avatar
44 months ago
Wait another 5 weeks, pay the max penalty. Then what? Off the hook?
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KaliYoni Avatar
44 months ago
€50 million is about US$57 million as of the writing of this post. Not a big deal for a company with annual operating cash flow of $104 billion and $35 billion of cash holdings. Apple probably will let the fine max out and take its time seeking a legislative solution. Plus with US interest rates set to rise over the short to middle term, Apple could even earn an increasing sum on a $57 million cash set aside while it waits for the Dutch government to do something. Further, eventually paying a Euro-denominated fine could give Apple some US tax savings because it can avoid repatriating $57 million from the Euro-zone. Crazy.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
NMBob Avatar
44 months ago

Does Apple even remember this anymore?
Yeah, it's like maybe this is on some yellow sticky that fell off of the chin of someone's iMac.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
huge_apple_fangirl Avatar
44 months ago
Does Apple even remember this anymore?
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)