French Court Levies Fine Against Apple for Abusive App Store Practices
The French Commercial Court in Paris today fined Apple $1 million for abusive App Store practices, reports Reuters. Apple imposed unfair commercial clauses on French app developers for access to the App Store, according to the ruling.
The decision is the result of a multi-year investigation by France's consumer affairs and fraud watchdog (DGCCRF), overseen by the French ministry of finance. French finance minister Bruno Le Maire has been championing the rights of developers, and he believes that Apple and Google's app stores take advantage of software developers. His investigation found that there are "significant imbalances" in the relationships between Apple and Google and the developers that sell apps on those stores.
In a statement, Apple said that it will look into the court's decision and will continue to work with French developers. The company also said that it believes in "vibrant and competitive markets" that allow innovation to flourish.
We will review this French court decision closely and will continue working hard to deliver support for developers and a safe experience for users.
Through the App Store, we've helped French developers of all sizes share their passion and creativity with users around the world while creating a secure and trusted place for customers.
The fine that Apple has been hit with is minuscule in terms of the company's income, but it could potentially lead to orders for App Store rule changes.
Apple is dealing with several other inquiries into its App Store and business practices in France, Germany, the Netherlands, the UK, and the United States, to name a few.
Popular Stories
Following nearly two years of rumors about a fourth-generation iPhone SE, The Information today reported that Apple suppliers are finally planning to begin ramping up mass production of the device in October of this year. If accurate, that timeframe would mean that the next iPhone SE would not be announced alongside the iPhone 16 series in September, as expected. Instead, the report...
Key details about the overall specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup have been shared by the leaker known as "Ice Universe," clarifying several important aspects of next year's devices. Reports in recent months have converged in agreement that Apple will discontinue the "Plus" iPhone model in 2025 while introducing an all-new iPhone 17 "Slim" model as an even more high-end option sitting...
Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today shared alleged specifications for a new ultra-thin iPhone 17 model rumored to launch next year. Kuo expects the device to be equipped with a 6.6-inch display with a current-size Dynamic Island, a standard A19 chip rather than an A19 Pro chip, a single rear camera, and an Apple-designed 5G chip. He also expects the device to have a...
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
Apple’s iCloud Private Relay service is down for some users, according to Apple’s System Status page. Apple says that the iCloud Private Relay service may be slow or unavailable. The outage started at 2:34 p.m. Eastern Time, but it does not appear to be affecting all iCloud users. Some impacted users are unable to browse the web without turning iCloud Private Relay off, while others are...
