2023-10-31 22:01:07
A ACM (Authority for Consumers and Markets), the Dutch antitrust body, declared that certain aspects of Apple’s commission structure violate European Union (EU) antitrust rules. To the information is from Bloomberg.
According to the website, ACM said that Maçã would be applying a fee policy that benefits apps that do not offer subscription services, charging them less commissions, while imposing higher fees on those that have some paid content.
This, according to the regulatory body, places an unequal financial burden on companies that adopt the subscription model, resulting in significant additional costs for them without a clear justification for this supposed disparity.
Apple, it is worth remembering, had suggested reducing the fee it charges on purchases with third-party systems in the Netherlands from 30% to 27%. However, the ACM indicated that this would not be sufficient to resolve the concerns raised by it.
Now, the company has two options:
Dispute the ACM’s conclusions, that is, disagree with the allegations made by the regulatory body; Implement measures to resolve the issues identified by the ACM, which could involve a review of the commissions that Apple applies to the App Store in the Netherlands.
The decision, of course, has implications that go beyond the country’s borders. In some ways, this could open the door to a broader EU-wide investigation into Apple’s commission policies.
It is worth highlighting that There is already an investigation into how the Cupertino giant restricts apps from informing users about cheaper subscription options that are available outside the App Store.
When contacted, ACM and Apple have not yet commented on the most recent decision.
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