Spotify files complaint against Apple in Europe over ‘unfair’ fees and restrictions

Spotify has announced that it’s filing a complaint against Apple with the European Commission (EC), citing anti-competition practices and a business model that gives Apple an “unfair advantage”.

“In recent years, Apple has introduced rules to the App Store that purposely limit choice and stifle innovation at the expense of the user experience — essentially acting as both a player and referee to deliberately disadvantage other app developers,” noted Spotify cofounder and CEO Daniel Ek, in a statement. “After trying unsuccessfully to resolve the issues directly with Apple, we’re now requesting that the EC take action to ensure fair competition.”

Spotify’s complaint against Apple goes back many years, and the crux of its ire centers on how Apple controls the iOS platform on which Spotify relies on to operate on iPhones and iPads, as well as the App Store, and a competing music-streaming service. Indeed, Apple charges digital services such as Spotify 30 percent fees on all revenues garnered through the app, which means that Spotify has historically charged a higher fee for subscriptions on iOS — $13 per month vs. $10 through the web. Apple Music, meanwhile, costs $10 per month.

Apple first started charging its 30-percent commission on in-app transactions back in 2011, then five years later it tweaked its fee structure so that its 30 percent cut would drop to 15 percent in subsequent years. However, a growing number of subscription-based companies have taken umbrage at this model — last year Spotify stopped accepting payments from new subscribers through Apple’s in-app payment (iAP) system, and actively encouraged those already on a recurring App Store subscription to cancel their plan and renew it through Spotify directly for the normal $10 monthly fee.

Netflix recently joined Spotify in ditching its iTunes billing for new users for similar reasons.

“Apple requires that Spotify and other digital services pay a 30 percent tax on purchases made through Apple’s payment system, including upgrading from our Free to our Premium service,” Ek said. If we pay this tax, it would force us to artificially inflate the price of our Premium membership well above the price of Apple Music. And to keep our price competitive for our customers, that isn’t something we can do.”

Spotify’s complaint extends beyond that of mere fees. Indeed, Spotify has sought to communicate with its users on iOS to ensure they know that they can pay for a premium subscription outside of Apple’s ecosystem, something that Apple isn’t keen to encourage given that this would not only mean missing out on its cut of Spotify’s revenues, but it would also set a precedent that other companies would follow.

“If we choose not to use Apple’s payment system, forgoing the charge, Apple then applies a series of technical and experience-limiting restrictions on Spotify,” Ek said. “For example, they limit our communication with our customers — including our outreach beyond the app. In some cases, we aren’t even allowed to send emails to our customers who use Apple. Apple also routinely blocks our experience-enhancing upgrades. Over time, this has included locking Spotify and other competitors out of Apple services such as Siri, HomePod, and Apple Watch.”

Subscribe To ANE Talk Trends On Youtube

Subscribe To All Naija Entertainment On Youtube