Apple is facing a new multibillion-euro lawsuit out of The Netherlands that alleges the company overcharges users who purchase apps and in-app subscriptions through the App Store and accuses Apple of partaking in "market dominance" and "anti-competitive practices."
The foundation spearheading the lawsuit is the Consumer Competition Claims Foundation, which describes itself as "an independent non-profit foundation that is committed to protecting consumers against unfair commercial practices and violations of consumer law."
On its website, the foundation says that Apple, through its App Store policies, is overcharging users who pay for apps and in-app services, adding that users should "demand" refunds for purchases.
By using anti-competitive practices, Apple has been able to charge excessively high prices and impose restrictive conditions. Apple excluded all competition and withheld choice for consumers on their App-store and in-app purchases.
The foundation points to what is commonly referred to as the "Apple tax," a 15% or 30% commission that Apple takes for all digital purchases made on and through the App Store. The foundation says that the commission forces developers to increase prices for users. "iPhone and iPad owners pay the price for Apple's App-store abusive monopoly," the foundation states.
Bloombergreports the foundation believes the lawsuit will lead to upwards of $5.5 billion in damages sought for all EU iPhone and iPad users who have made a purchase through Apple's App Store. On its website, the foundation asks customers to join their efforts to "hold Apple accountable."
The new lawsuit is one of several legal battles brewing for Apple in Europe. Apple continues to be fined by the Dutch consumer and markets authority for its failure to comply with a previous ruling, which allows for third-party payment methods for Dutch dating apps. The authority says that despite Apple's announcement and plan to let eligible developers use a third-party payment method for in-app purchases, Apple still fails to comply with the new ruling. Apple has been fined €50 million as a consequence.
Quick question, are you happy with your utility prices?
A lot of people buying gas and diesel might differ on that point.
Far cry from the dev charging 99p instead of 70p for a flappy birds app- don’t you think? No one is forced to buy anything from the App Store or from Apple itself. No one is forced to buy an iPhone. And Apple should not be forced to give away anything. It’s business - suck it up.
Friday October 21, 2022 1:06 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple recently started sending payments to select App Store developers as part of a $100 million settlement it reached in the lawsuit Cameron et al v. Apple Inc., which alleged that Apple had a monopoly on the distribution of iOS apps and in-app purchases. Apple referred to the settlement as a "Small Developer Assistance Fund."
Eligible developers were expected to receive a payment between...
Thursday September 1, 2022 1:03 pm PDT by Eric Slivka
Prominent developer Kosta Eleftheriou has settled his 2021 lawsuit against Apple over its App Store review actions that he said hindered his ability to distribute apps on the platform while allowing copycat competitors to flourish, reports TechCrunch.
In his lawsuit, Eleftheriou complained that Apple repeatedly threw up "roadblock after roadblock" against his FlickType keyboard app for the...
Tuesday October 4, 2022 8:01 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Cydia parent company SaurikIT, LLC has filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit after U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers dismissed the company's antitrust lawsuit against Apple last month, according to court documents. SaurikIT had voluntarily asked for the case to be dismissed so the appeal process could begin at the higher court.
SaurikIT sued Apple in...
Wednesday November 30, 2022 12:20 pm PST by Juli Clover
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Spotify CEO Daniel Ek today spoke out against Apple's App Store policies, joining Twitter CEO Elon Musk, who earlier this week said that Apple was making moderation demands and had threatened to withhold Twitter from the App Store.
At The New York Times DealBook Summit, Zuckerberg said that only Apple attempts to limit the apps that are in the App Store, and...
Wednesday October 5, 2022 10:21 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple is today beginning to implement App Store pricing increases across all territories and countries that use the euro, with the hike attributed to the euro's weakness against the U.S. dollar. Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, whose company is currently embroiled in a legal battle with Apple, spoke up on the price update and said Apple had no justification for it.
In a statement, Sweeney likened ...
Tuesday December 6, 2022 10:00 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today announced it is providing developers with an additional 700 price points for App Store apps, allowing apps to be priced as low as 29 cents, or as high as $10,000. Developers who want to price their app above $1,000 must submit a request to Apple to help prevent meaninglessly expensive apps from being released on the App Store.
In total, developers will have the ability to select...
Wednesday February 23, 2022 6:14 am PST by Sami Fathi
Apple would rather pay a maximum of €50 million in fines than address concerns brought forward by the Dutch competition authority regarding developer access to third-party payment methods on the App Store, the EU's head of digital policy, Margrethe Vestager, has said.
During a speech about the digital economy and privacy (via TechCrunch), Vestager said that Apple "essentially prefers paying...
Friday August 26, 2022 10:39 am PDT by Juli Clover
The United States Justice Department is in the early stages of crafting an antitrust complaint against Apple, reports Politico. A source that spoke to the site described the lawsuit as "potential," indicating that the DOJ's plans are not yet finalized.
Prosecutors within the DOJ are said to be "assembling the pieces" for a lawsuit that could be filed by the end of the year, but the decision...
Monday December 5, 2022 11:44 am PST by Juli Clover
Due to production issues at Apple supplier factories in China, the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are backordered and basically out of stock at every store. If you were planning to gift or receive an iPhone 14 Pro model for the holidays and didn't already get one, you're basically out of luck because they're gone until late December.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
Saturday December 3, 2022 10:23 am PST by Joe Rossignol
iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max, iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max, and iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max models feature a LiDAR Scanner next to the rear camera that can be used to measure a person's height instantly in Apple's preinstalled Measure app.
To measure a person's height, simply open the Measure app, point your iPhone at the person you want to measure, and make sure they are visible on the screen from...
Thursday December 1, 2022 8:44 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to publicly release iOS 16.2 for the iPhone in mid-December, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The update remains in beta testing for now, with at least eight new features and changes already uncovered so far.
iOS 16.2 introduces a number of new features, including Apple's new whiteboard app Freeform, two new Lock Screen widgets for Sleep and Medications, the ability to hide...
The next-generation MacBook Pro models could feature faster RAM, according to a recent report from a reliable source.
MacRumors Forums member "Amethyst," who accurately revealed details about the Mac Studio and Studio Display before those products were announced, recently provided information about Apple's upcoming 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models. The new machines are expected to feature...
Friday December 2, 2022 2:13 pm PST by Juli Clover
Apple in late October began testing iOS 16.2 and iPadOS 16.2 updates, providing betas to both developers and public beta testers. As of now, we've had four total betas, with the fourth beta having been released earlier this week. iOS 16.2 and iPadOS 16.2 are expected before the end of the year, and we thought we'd try to narrow down the launch timeline.
With only four betas released since...
Sunday December 4, 2022 7:38 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Mass shipments of Apple's long-rumored AR/VR headset may be delayed until the second half of 2023 due to unspecified "software-related issues," according to the latest information shared today by tech analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Apple headset render by Ian Zelbo Kuo said mass shipments of components for the headset are still likely to begin in the first half of 2023, but he believes that mass...
Saturday December 3, 2022 10:55 am PST by Joe Rossignol
While we're still around nine months away from Apple unveiling the iPhone 15 lineup, rumors already suggest that the higher-end Pro models will have even more exclusive features than usual compared to the standard models next year.
There are currently at least five features rumored to be exclusive to iPhone 15 Pro models:A17 chip: iPhone 15 Pro models will be equipped with an A17 Bionic...
Monday December 5, 2022 12:38 am PST by Tim Hardwick
UK-based tech company Nothing plans to launch a smartphone in the US to directly compete with Apple's iPhone, according to a new report out today. In an interview with CNBC, Nothing CEO Carl Pei said the startup is in "early conversations" with American cellular carriers about launching a new phone in the US, but he stopped short of naming any of the carriers or the phone model.
Nothing...
Tuesday December 6, 2022 7:09 am PST by Sami Fathi
Apple today announced Apple Music Sing, a new feature in Apple Music that lets users sing their favorite songs with adjustable vocals and more.
Apple Music Sing will utilize Apple Music's real-time lyrics to allow users to sing to their favorite songs using adjustable vocals, background vocals, and duet view to allow more than one singer.Apple Music Sing includes:
Adjustable vocals: Users...
Top Rated Comments
See above, you need gas, to go to work and grocery shopping, do you really need a game / app?
EDIT:
Love the downvoters, like they really think Utility and Gas are as important / needed as Apps :D.
I would pay for all your apps if you staied 1 week without light /phone / gas / heater / air conditioner using a car and so on :D
If not, I’m not sure this lawsuit makes much sense.