03/04/2024

EU Hits Apple with Deterrent $2 Billion Antitrust Fine

It's related to a Spotify case

On Monday, Apple was hit with a 1.84-billion-euro ($2 billion) European Union (EU) antitrust fine, its first ever and comprising mostly a deterrent, for preventing Spotify and other music streaming services from informing users of payment options outside its App Store.

The European Commission's decision was triggered by a 2019 complaint by Swedish music streaming service Spotify over this restriction and Apple's 30 percent App Store fees.

The EU enforcer said Apple's restrictions constituted unfair trading conditions, a relatively novel argument in an antitrust case and also used by the Dutch antitrust agency in a decision against Apple in 2021 in a case brought by dating app providers.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Reuters.