Dutch antitrust regulators fined Apple 5 million euros ($5.7 million) again on Monday, its fourth for failing to allow Dutch software app makers to use non-Apple Pay methods for dating apps on the App Store fined for the procedure.
The Consumer and Markets Authority (ACM) has fined Apple 5 million euros a week for missing a January 15 deadline to make changes ordered by the regulator.
Apple’s App Store payment policies, particularly requiring app developers to use the Apple Pay system exclusively and charging up to 30 percent commissions, have come under scrutiny by antitrust officials and lawmakers in several countries, most recently the United States.
In a post on its website, Apple claimed that it complied with the ACM’s December order, which found it was abusing its market dominance and had to make changes.
But Dutch regulators reiterated on Monday that Apple had failed to comply and imposed “unnecessary and unreasonable” conditions on dating app developers.
ACM has a requirement that developers who want to use non-Apple payment methods must submit a new app to the App Store and then convince their customers to switch.
Apple said non-Apple payment methods pose security risks, but did not respond to a request for comment.
The Coalition for App Fairness (CAF), which represents developers including Tinder owner Match Group, said Apple’s strategy was to delay changes to its App Store as long as possible and to determine the minimum number of changes that antitrust officials would accept.
CAF representative Damien Geradin said that “each year of delays will bring in $25 billion in revenue for Apple.” “If you could hold on for a few more years, wouldn’t you spend millions on a lawyer?”
Apple said on Jan. 15 that it had complied with the Dutch regulator’s decision, but the regulator responded that the company had made no changes, only saying it would.
In a February 3 statement, Apple described how developers could implement alternative payment methods, but ACM said the company did not provide enough information to assess what changed.
Apple said it still intends to take a 27% commission on any in-app payments it does not process, just slightly less than the 30% commission it charges on processed in-app payments.
An ACM spokesman declined to comment on whether this was acceptable.
Complete News Source : The Hindu
