The Guardian - Why is Apple facing a €500m fine from EU over music streaming?

OMI Europe director Max von Thun points out that a fine levied by EU regulators on Apple for unfair practices in the music streaming market is insufficient.

“If you want a really competitive AI ecosystem, you don’t want a challenger to OpenAI to be reliant on Microsoft infrastructure and investment,” von Thun said

Apple is to be fined €500m (£427m) for allegedly hobbling rivals in the music streaming market.

The Financial Times reported that the EU’s executive arm, the European Commission, will hand down the punishment after a long-running investigation.

Why does Apple face the prospect of a fine?

After a complaint by Spotify in 2019, the EU has been investigating Apple’s position in the music streaming app market. It has whittled down its investigation to focus on certain restrictions imposed on app developers by Apple. These restrictions prevent developers such as Spotify from telling iPhone and iPad users about cheaper music subscriptions that are available outside the App Store. Spotify argues that this benefits the tech company’s rival app, Apple Music.

The case is the latest example of legal wrangling over Apple’s App Store – a key digital gateway and source of complaint from companies that use it. 

Spotify is a longstanding critic of Apple’s App Store rules, which include charging a 30% fee on apps and in-app purchases. Apple moved recently to meet some of those concerns, under pressure from the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), by announcing that it will allow EU customers to download apps without going through its own store.

What does the EU think of Apple’s behaviour?

 Read full article here.