New rules for the EU: Spotify and Epic still angry with Apple
Apple has once again tweaked its App Store rules in order to comply with the EU's DMA law. Spotify and Epic react with frustration.
The dispute over the App Store in the EU enters the next round.
(Image: tre / Mac & i)
Following Apple's announcement that it will once again adjust its app store rules for the European Union in order to counter possible violations of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), Apple's main opponents on the subject, game manufacturer Epic Games and music streaming provider Spotify, have spoken out. The general reaction: they think little of the changes and even see "illegality" and "deliberate confusion" on the part of app providers who want to implement the new rules.
"Malicious compliance" continues
Epic CEO Tim Sweeney, known as a fierce critic of Apple not only in terms of DMA, wrote on X that Apple is continuing its "malicious compliance" and has even set a new "illegal 15 percent junk fee" for users who go to competitor app marketplaces. "[They also] want to police the business on these competing marketplaces." Apple's terms make it "completely uneconomical for developers to distribute their apps through both the Apple App Store and competing iOS app stores".
The company is preventing market players from competing on better terms and growing organically. However, Epic still plans to bring "Fortnite" to its own app store (and others). "If necessary, we'll do it on our own." Epic itself wants 12 percent from developers, which is 3 percent less than Apple wants from companies if they turn over under 1 million US dollars a year. However, there are no fees if the company's own payment services are used.
Spotify: Are confused by Apple
The streaming service Spotify, based in Sweden and now operating particularly strongly from the USA, told the IT blog TechCrunch that it considers Apple's new DMA plans to be "confusing" and ultimately "unacceptable". "We are currently evaluating Apple's deliberately confusing proposal that, at first glance, charges a fee of up to 25 percent for basic communications with users."
Apple is "again blatantly disregarding" the basic requirements of the DMA. "The European Commission has made it clear that charging recurring fees for basic elements such as pricing and linking is unacceptable." They are now calling on the Commission to speed up Apple's investigation and "impose daily fines" and enforce the DMA.
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