Apple Adjusts App Store Rules in Europe Amid Antitrust Scrutiny

Apple has announced changes to its App Store rules in the European Union (EU) to comply with the European Commission’s demands and avoid further financial penalties. This decision comes after Brussels fined the American tech giant €500 million in April for abusive clauses in its app store that disadvantaged app providers and their customers.

This penalty, along with a €200 million fine against Meta, marked the first enforcement action under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which took effect in 2024 to curb the dominant market positions of tech giants.

The Commission has accused Apple of hindering the ability of app providers, such as Netflix and Spotify, to communicate directly with end-users about offering lower prices through other channels. Apple stated that it will now allow these providers to offer payment options within their apps.

“Additional Modifications”

Despite these changes, Apple reiterated its disagreement with the European Commission and its intention to challenge the imposed constraints in court. “The European Commission is requiring Apple to make a series of additional modifications to the App Store. We disagree with this decision and intend to appeal,” the company announced. Apple has until July 7 to appeal to the EU court.

The European executive branch stated that it needs time to analyze the modifications. “The Commission takes note of Apple’s announcement and will now assess these new commercial conditions regarding their compliance with the DMA,” explained Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier. “As part of this assessment, the Commission considers it particularly important to gather the opinions of the companies concerned and other interested third parties before deciding on the next steps.”

Le Monde with AFP

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