Report cites sources stating that the EU will fine Apple $539 million next month

Apple may have to dig deep into its pockets to pay a fine imposed on it by who else: the EU. The fine, which could total 500 million euros ($539 million), would be accompanied by a ban on certain App Store rules related to music streaming apps. The Financial Times (via Bloomberg) claims that five anonymous sources claiming to be aware of the case indicated that the European Commission (EC) will announce the fines in a judgment to be made public early next month.

Spotify cried out to the EU by filing an antitrust complaint against Apple in 2019; the music streamer complained about then-current App Store rules that prevented developers from sending customers links to alternative payment options. Alternative in-app payment platforms would have allowed Spotify to avoid having to pay Apple the 15-30% cut it receives on in-app payments processed using its own payment platform in-app from the tech giant.

The Financial Times report says the EC will rule that Apple violated EU antitrust law, creating “unfair trading conditions” for its competitors. Apple could consider itself lucky if the fine was limited to 500 million euros since the penalty could have reached 10% of the company's turnover for the most recent financial year. For fiscal 2023, Apple brought in $383 billion, meaning the fine could have reached $38.3 billion.

Apple changed the App Store rules in 2021 and the new App Store policy launched in 2022. It allowed developers of “Reader apps”, apps that provide content such as music, videos, digital magazines, newspapers, books and audio, to direct subscribers to the web to make payments and bypass the “Apple tax”. But Spotify said last summer that Apple's changes “were just for show.”

Next month, with the release of iOS 17.4, iPhone users in the 27 EU states will be allowed to download apps from third-party app stores, use a mobile browser that runs on a different browser engine than Apple's WebKit and to create applications within the application. payments via alternative in-app purchasing platforms.

In-app purchases made through the EU App Store and processed through the Apple platform will give the company a commission of 10-17% of the transaction amount, down from the 15-30% it receives in other regions of the world. Apple will not take any cut on in-app purchases processed through third-party platforms. But don't start tossing the hat at Apple, as the company is adding new base technology fees for some apps that are successful in the EU.