Current location:Worldly Workshop news portal > entertainment
EU set to fine Apple $540 mln for unfair play
Worldly Workshop news portal2024-05-21 16:30:17【entertainment】4People have gathered around
IntroductionU.S. tech giant Apple will soon be hit with a fine of up to 500 million euros ($540 million) from th
U.S. tech giant Apple will soon be hit with a fine of up to 500 million euros ($540 million) from the European Union for breaking the law on access to music streaming services, marking a significant setback for the company.
The European Commission has been investigating whether Apple had distorted competition in the music streaming market by blocking certain apps from informing iPhone users about more cost-effective subscription options outside of its own platform.
The announcement of the fine, which would be the EU's first against Apple, is expected early next month, the Financial Times reported, which cited five people close to the investigation. In 2020, Apple faced a 1.1-billion-euro fine in France for purported anti-competitive practices.
The EU investigation was initiated after an official complaint from music streaming service Spotify in 2019 that claimed it had been forced to raise its monthly subscription fees to off set expenses linked to Apple's App Store regulations.
The probe explored whether Apple's "anti-steering" conditions violated the bloc's rules on abuse of dominance, potentially disadvantaging music consumers by leading to increased costs for apps.
Spotify alleged that Apple restricts choice and competition within its App Store by imposing a 30 percent fee on all transactions.
Additionally, Apple prohibited Spotify and other companies from notifying customers on their devices that they could bypass the commission and secure a more favorable deal by registering on Spotify's website.
Apple contends that its fee is warranted because of substantial investments in maintaining a secure app store and granting Spotify access to a vast customer base.
Anti-competitive fees
In contrast, Spotify asserts that Apple Music, Apple's in-house music streaming service, does not incur equivalent expenses, leading to an unfair advantage and characterizing the fees as anti-competitive.
The European Commission is expected to declare Apple's actions illegal because they run counter to the bloc's rules that uphold competition in the single market.
Apple and other major tech operations are facing continuing heightened scrutiny because of competition concerns. Google is currently appealing fines exceeding 8 billion euros imposed by the EU across three competition investigations.
In a bid to pacify Brussels, Apple revealed alterations to its iOS mobile software, App Store and Safari browser last month, enabling companies to indicate more affordable subscription alternatives outside their platforms. Apple claimed that these adjustments "give developers choice". Upon the disclosure, Spotify criticized the modifications as a "complete and total farce".
The imminent fine for Apple represents another move by the EU to curb the dominance of so-called Big Tech companies. Regulations set to come into effect next month will designate Apple, Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft as "digital gatekeepers", subjecting them to stringent new competition guidelines.
Address of this article:http://chile.highlanderdistrict.org/content-76f099856.html
Very good!(85)
Related articles
- Philippines blames China for loss of giant clams in disputed shoal and urges environmental inquiry
- SCO Forum 'Year of Tourism 2023' Opens in Xinjiang
- Tibetan Festival Celebrated at Foot of 'China's Most Beautiful Peak'
- Rural Tourism Route Injects New Momentum into Countryside in SW China's Chongqing
- Baby Reindeer's real
- County in E China Develops Rope Net Industry
- County in E China Develops Rope Net Industry
- China's 40th Antarctic Scientific Expedition Begins
- Shohei Ohtani's first walk
- China Releases First Pan
Popular articles
Recommended
Everybody may love Raymond, but Ray Romano loves Peter Boyle
Xiaohe Township in C China Makes Great Efforts to Promote Local Artists
Volkswagen invests 2.5B euros to expand innovation hub in China
Art Show Held to Celebrate Chongyang Festival in Lhasa, Tibet
Ricky Stenhouse punching Kyle Busch could lead to suspension
China Launches Shenzhou
CCTF Listed as National 5A
Tibetan Festival Celebrated at Foot of 'China's Most Beautiful Peak'
Links
- Foundation to convene 3rd annual summit on anti
- Jury: BNSF Railway contributed to 2 deaths in Montana town
- Lawsuit alleges negligence in hiring of maintenance man accused of torturing resident
- Italy's 2006 World Cup
- Delta Air Lines, facing another union attempt to organize flight attendants, is raising their pay
- Minnesota state senator arrested on suspicion of burglary
- Tibetans say compensation for Chinese land grab is too low — Radio Free Asia
- Apple takes down WhatsApp, Threads from China app store — Radio Free Asia
- Masters champion Scottie Scheffler builds 5
- Trump's $175 million bond in New York civil fraud judgment case is settled with cash promise