Apple faces 500 million euro EU fine after Spotify complaint

According to a report in the Financial Times, Apple must pay a €500 million fine to the European Union as a result of a complaint filed by music streaming giant Spotify in March 2019. The criticism of the iPhone manufacturer focuses primarily on the fees - anyone who takes out a Spotify subscription directly via the iPhone app pays 30 percent of the subscription fee to Apple instead of to Spotify.

In order to cover these costs, Spotify would have to increase the subscription price accordingly and would therefore no longer be able to compete with Apple Music. In addition, Apple prohibits apps such as Spotify from selling subscriptions through links to external websites or informing customers of such an option by email or in-app message. As all app updates must be approved by Apple, the company can delay the rollout of new features on competing streaming services at will. Spotify demanded the same treatment as Apple Music at the time, in addition to the option of third-party payment services and free communication with its own users.

Most of these changes will already be implemented in March, with the rollout of iOS 17.4. While apps such as Spotify will be able to be distributed on alternative app stores in the future and provided with their own payment services, the technology giant from Cupertino is introducing new fees at the same time, which have already drawn harsh criticism. At the center of this criticism is a "core technology fee" of 0.50 euros per download, regardless of whether an app is downloaded from the App Store or other platforms.