Current:Home > ScamsApple fined almost $2 billion by EU for giving its music streaming service leg up over rivals' -Aspire Money Growth
Apple fined almost $2 billion by EU for giving its music streaming service leg up over rivals'
Poinbank Exchange View
Date:2025-04-09 13:01:00
London — The European Union leveled its first antitrust penalty against Apple on Monday, fining the U.S. tech giant nearly $2 billion for breaking the bloc's competition laws by unfairly favoring its own music streaming service over those of competitors.
Apple banned app developers from "fully informing iOS users about alternative and cheaper music subscription services outside of the app," said the European Commission, the 27-nation bloc's executive arm and top antitrust enforcer.
That is illegal under EU antitrust rules. Apple behaved this way for almost a decade, which meant many users paid "significantly higher prices for music streaming subscriptions," the commission said.
The 1.8 billion-euro fine follows a long-running investigation triggered by a complaint from Swedish streaming service Spotify five years ago.
Apple vowed to appeal the fine in court, saying in a statement cited by the Reuters news service that, "The decision was reached despite the Commission's failure to uncover any credible evidence of consumer harm, and ignores the realities of a market that is thriving, competitive, and growing fast."
"The primary advocate for this decision and the biggest beneficiary is Spotify. ... Spotify has the largest music streaming app in the world, and has met with the European Commission more than 65 times during this investigation," it said.
The EU has led global efforts to crack down on Big Tech companies, including a series of multbillion-dollar fines for Google and charging Meta with distorting the online classified ad market. The commission also has opened a separate antitrust investigation into Apple's mobile payments service, and the company has promised to open up its tap-and-go mobile payment system to rivals in order to resolve it.
The commission's investigation initially centered on two concerns. One was the iPhone maker's practice of forcing app developers that are selling digital content to use its in-house payment system, which charges a 30% commission on all subscriptions.
But the EU later dropped that to focus on how Apple prevents app makers from telling their users about cheaper ways to pay for subscriptions that don't involve going through an app.
The investigation found that Apple banned streaming services from telling users about how much subscription offers cost outside of their apps, including links in their apps to pay for alternative subscriptions or even emailing users to tell them about different pricing options.
The fine comes the same week that EU rules are set to kick in that are aimed at preventing tech companies from dominating digital markets.
The Digital Markets Act, due to take effect Thursday, imposes a set of do's and don'ts on "gatekeeper" companies including Apple, Meta, Google parent Alphabet, and TikTok parent ByteDance under threat of hefty fines.
The DMA's provisions are designed to prevent tech giants from the sort of behavior that's at the heart of the Apple investigation. Apple has already revealed how it will comply, including allowing iPhone users in Europe to use app stores other than its own and enabling developers to offer alternative payment systems.
- In:
- Apple
veryGood! (915)
Related
- Krispy Kreme offers a free dozen Grinch green doughnuts: When to get the deal
- For many Asian Americans, Ferguson unrest set them on a path of resistance and reflection
- Workers at Canadian National Railway Co. will start returning to work Friday, union says
- AP Week in Pictures: Global
- Tom Holland's New Venture Revealed
- Powdr to sell Vermont’s Killington, the largest mountain resort in New England
- Texas blocks transgender people from changing sex on driver’s licenses
- Why Do Efforts To Impose Higher Taxes On Empty Homes In Honolulu Keep Stalling?
- 'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
- Chicago police say they’re ready for final day of protests at DNC following night of no arrests
Ranking
- Juan Soto praise of Mets' future a tough sight for Yankees, but World Series goal remains
- 4 former Milwaukee hotel workers plead not guilty to murder in D’Vontaye Mitchell's death
- The Latest: The real test for Harris’ campaign begins in the presidential race against Trump
- Missouri Supreme Court blocks agreement that would have halted execution
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- A teen’s murder, mold in the walls: Unfulfilled promises haunt public housing
- Transgender Texans blocked from changing their sex on their driver’s license
- AP Week in Pictures: Global
Recommendation
$73.5M beach replenishment project starts in January at Jersey Shore
USM removed the word ‘diverse’ from its mission statement. Faculty reps weren’t consulted
See Gisele Bündchen's Sweet Message to Tom Brady's Son Jack
Workers at Canadian National Railway Co. will start returning to work Friday, union says
Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie return for an 'Encore,' reminisce about 'The Simple Life'
How Nevada colleges and universities are encouraging students to vote
Julianne Hough Addresses Viral “Energy Work Session” and the NSFW Responses
Biden promised to clean up heavily polluted communities. Here is how advocates say he did